A Heavy Cross
by SepticLovebite
Summary: She would make him tell her to get lost if that's what he wanted. He didn't want her to opt out. He didn't trust anyone else to make sure she didn't.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Thank you for all your reads and reviews. Another multi-chap. I am a glutton for punishment! I listened to the Gossip the entire time I wrote this, as some may guess from the title!

TWDTWDTWD

Eventually, the cold air whipping around her face, combined with the dull rumble of the motorcycle's engine meant that Carol could no longer hear anything going on around her. Not that there was much to hear. Daryl had hardly said a word to her since the night around the fire, where she insulted him. It hadn't meant to come out that way, she was trying to express how much faith she had in him. Instead, she only damaged their already fragile relationship even further.

Still, there must've been some hope. It had been three days since they left the Greene farm and she still road the back of his bike. They had three cars now, trailing behind the bike in convoy, that meant plenty of room for her. He didn't acknowledge her in any way when she was on it, although she knew he couldn't forget about her as she encircled his chest, gripping the front of his vest whenever he made a turn. But she wasn't going to give up. She would make him tell her to get lost if that's what he wanted.

They camped in the open air. Fall had taken hold and the nights were cold. Every one of them huddled around the fire, trying to keep warm. Except Daryl. He stood back from the rest, as was always his way, eyes scanning the area for intruders. Carol had noticed the silence. No-one could bring themselves to talk to anyone. Not since Rick laid down the law. They all just seemed to be going through the motions. So much had happened in the last few days and it had knocked the wind out of them. Out of her, at least. First Sophia, her beautiful Sophia. Then Dale. Shane. Jimmy. Patricia. Andrea. Poor Andrea. She had saved Carol's life and now they didn't even know if she had managed to escape with her own.

Was there any point anymore? It just seemed that they were living just so they could wait to die. She thought that maybe there was a chance to build and to grow on Hershel's farm. She had hoped. Now they had nothing. They had no food. Daryl was hunting what he could, but it sometimes took hours just to scrounge up enough for them to have a few mouthfuls each. They cleaned out every car they saw, but they drove on deserted roads and there weren't many. It would be considered a good haul if they managed to siphon a little fuel and found a cereal bar and a bottle of water. They needed to get out onto the highway, to go to a town and get real supplies. Their ammunition was depleted. All they could rely on was a couple of knives and Daryl's crossbow. If they met a herd now, it would be game over for all of them.

The thought of that happening didn't frighten her anymore. Maybe it would be a relief.

TWDTWDTWD

Daryl wondered if sticking around was the right decision. He trusted Rick's judgement. He believed that the man was the right man to lead the group. But he wasn't sure if there was a place for him there any longer. He knew he didn't do well with other people. He hated feeling crowded, didn't enjoy pointless chit chat or false friendships. The only thing that he had in common with these people was that they all had made it alive so far, when so many hadn't. Maybe that's why he gravitated to Carol. She didn't yap on like the other women, she wasn't interested in gossiping or causing drama. She kept to herself, doing as she was asked, busying herself with the domestic chores that always seemed to be in abundance back at the farm. She was little bit fucked up. So was he.

Now though, she was at a loss. He could see she was restless. There were no clothes to darn, all they had was what was on their backs. There was nothing to cook, save for the kills he brought to them every afternoon. But there was little to be done with them, with no store cupboard ingredients. She wasn't used to just sitting there, waiting for something that would never come.

They needed to stop and collect themselves. They moved without any real direction, never stopping more than a few hours. They worked on a day by day basis, just collecting enough food and fuel to take them on a little further. It was killing them. Rick, for all his intentions that first night out of the farm, needed a swift kick into action. If Daryl had to be the one to do it, so be it.

He made the decision as they drove through the countryside, spotting a house up the road, the first in miles. Carol sat behind him and she was more fidgety than normal. He tried to forget she was there, he didn't want to think about her, because she was reason number one as to why he hadn't split already. It was hard to forget about her though, when her thighs pressed round his hips like a vice, hands wrapped up in his vest, twisting and untwisting the edges of the leather repeatedly, her forehead pressed against his back, protecting her face from the harsh wind. He wanted to tell her to get off and get in one of the cars, but everytime he kicked up the engine and looked at her, waiting to clamber on behind him, the words died before they passed his lips.

Part of him wanted to keep her close. She was fragile, the death of her daughter still at the forefront of her mind. Daryl thought that perhaps the events that followed, the loss of so many of the group and the fact that there was nothing to distract her might tip her over the edge. He didn't want her to opt out. He didn't trust anyone else to make sure she didn't.

He pulled the bike over a hundred yards or so from the house, Rick pulled up alongside up with a quizzical look on his face. Daryl turned the engine off and kicked the stand up, nodding his head at the other man, a signal to have a private discussion. Carol made to get up before him but he put a hand on her knee and she froze at the contact.

"Stay here." He told her gruffly, releasing her leg and swinging himself off the motorcycle. He didn't look back as he walked over to the bank at the side of the road, but he could sense Rick behind him.

"What's up?" Rick looked tired, his hand rubbing over his face as he spoke.

"We need to figure out what's goin' on here. We're wonderin' about without a fuckin' clue. You're losin' them." His head jerked towards the convoy, he could see their faces pressed up against the glass, trying to get the gist of their conversation.

Rick sighed. "I don't know what to do." He admitted finally.

"We need to get indoors for a night. It's too cold for this crap." He looked at the house in the distance and Rick followed his gaze. "Then tomorrow, we start makin' plans. You still thinkin' of Fort Benning?"

The former sheriff nodded. "You think it's a good idea?"

"Ain't no worse than any other plan. Ain't too sure we gonna find anythin' worth stayin' for though."

"We gotta know for certain. If there's nothing there...then we look for somewhere to stay for the winter. Build our supplies." He swallowed and looked back at the house. It looked empty. Windows were all intact, there was one car parked in the drive. "Let's check this place out."

"Let's go on the bike. Circle the place first." Rick nodded and they made their way back to the cars to tell the others of the plan. Daryl headed for the bike where Carol hadn't moved, twisting her hands nervously.

"Go in Rick's car." He told her, taking her wrist to help her off the bike.

"Why? What's going on?" She looked at him, bewildered, almost as if she were hurt by his words.

"We're gonna try camp up there tonight. Me and Rick are gonna circle the place. Wait with the others." He released her wrist suddenly, he hadn't meant to touch her at all.

"Be careful." She murmured softly, before turning away.

He watched her as she headed to the car behind her, nodding at Rick as he walked past her and slid into his seat at the wheel of the car.

He cranked the engine as Rick sat behind him awkwardly, not used to travelling in such a way.

The front door to the property was swinging open, he noticed as they drove past. It certainly looked empty. The garden was overgrown, the grass turned yellow from the summer heat. There was a chicken coop in amongst the overgrowth, but the top has been torn off, the animals likely having been picked off by Walkers. They spotted nothing around them, the noise of the bike didn't draw anyone. Or anything.

Daryl cut the engine and they dismounted, both drawing their weapons as they walked to the front door, the screen was blowing back and forth in the wind. Rick caught it with his foot and entered first, pistol drawn. The hallway was poorly lit, a console table had been knocked over, the family photographs lay smashed and broken on the floor. Daryl turned his gaze away at the sight of one nearest to him, a baby dressed in a frilly hat, and focused on the doors nearest to him.

The living room was mostly untouched, small but homely, the only thing out of place was a few magazines that had blown off the coffee table. They walked through it to get to the dining room, heading towards the back of the property and it too, was pristine. Photos on the wall seemed to imply that a family of six had lived here. A young couple and four children, judging by the pictures, none of the children were over the age of 7 or 8. Daryl remembered what Rick had once told him, about how he knew Lori and Carl had run. Pictures were missing, that's how he knew there was hope. He looked at the portrait over the dining room fire place, a wedding photo. There was no hope here.

They made it back into the hallway, after clearing the conservatory attached to the dining room. Comprised entirely of glass, it provided a good view of the left side of the house and Daryl gestured to Rick at the river he could see further down the garden bank. A good sign.

They were just about to push open the door to what they assumed would be the kitchen when they heard the clang of metal bouncing to the floor, quickly followed by something scratching at the wood. Daryl got into position and Rick kicked the door, moving aside swiftly to let Daryl aim his weapon at the noise.

The Walker immediately lurched forward, groaning and drooling at the sight of Daryl, but before it could even talk two steps he released his arrow straight into its forehead and it crumpled to the ground immediately. It was female, dressed in a ragged summer dress, with dirty barefeet and a mass of tangled hair. Daryl recognised it as the woman in the family pictures.

There was no others in the kitchen. On the table, Rick found a folded piece of paper, the name Tim scrawled across the front.

"'Tim, gone to Mom's with the kids. Follow us there. Julie and Lilly got bit. Be careful, Julie is around here some place. Stay safe. Mark.' There could be another one." Rick whispered, looking towards the ceiling.

There were several doors upstairs, all shut. They proceeded with caution, taking one at a time, but each was empty. There was a master bedroom, a family bathroom and they found three children's bedrooms, the beds all neatly made. The last one, however, held a stench they recognised. The little wooden sign on the door proclaimed it to be Lilly's room and the two men gave each other a warning look. Rick tapped his gun on the door, to encourage anything in there to make noise, but there was none. He opened the door and immediately grimaced at the sight before him.

Daryl followed him and his heart lurched. A crib came into his immediate view, the side pulled down, blankets trailing from the mattress to the floor, where the tiny remains of a child lay, her little dress torn and stained, it was the only evidence that this body belonged to a human, such was the damage she had suffered. Rick heaved at the sight of the mangled little girl and Daryl had to hold back his own choked reaction. It never got easier to see something like that.

"We gotta move her 'fore the others come in." Daryl finally managed to say in a whisper, walking to the window to peer out and check on the cars. "The women'll be hysterical." Rick nodded, but didn't seem to be able to move from his position by the door.

Truthfully, Daryl wasn't thinking of the other women. Just Carol. He knew this would crush her to see. Somebody's little one. He didn't want her to see this. No mother should have to see what she had seen. He wouldn't make it worse.

When he realised Rick wasn't going to help, he passed his crossbow to him and using the covers from the crib he scooped the tiny thing up, covering it in the pink blankets. They made it back to the kitchen, Rick dragged the Walkers body out the back door, wrapping it in tarp he found by the garden shed and Daryl tucked the little pink bundle underneath, back next to her mother. It was the best they could do.

"We'll tell the others not to go in that room. Don't tell them about the baby." Rick told him afterwards and Daryl nodded in agreement. He went out the front door and waved across to the cars and the engines immediately revved up and met them up the drive.

"Place is clear." Rick told them. "Just one Walker. It's taken care of."

TWDTWDTWD

Carol glanced back at Daryl as she stepped into the house, he looked incredibly uncomfortable, almost as if he wanted to vomit. He refused to look back at her and she wondered what had happened in the time that they had been apart. She followed Lori and Carl into the kitchen, rooting through the cupboards. There was plenty to be had, the previous owners hadn't thought to clear out their dried goods to take with them. It took them ten minutes to deposit everything of use onto the kitchen table. There would be enough to last them two or three days, if they were careful. More if they lit a fire and had some water to cook pasta and such. Lori took Carl into the living room, where T-Dog, Rick and Hershel were dragging down mattresses from the bedrooms. They would camp together downstairs tonight.

She twisted the tap hopefully, wondering if the property had it's own water system, but wasn't surprised when nothing happened.

"There's river at the bottom of the garden." She jumped at the sound of his voice, he was leaning against the door frame, watching her. It was the first thing he had said to her in days that wasn't a command.

She nodded and moved to the back door, looking to find it and when she opened the door, she could hear the sound of the water rushing. It was peaceful. And a little unnerving. She shut the door and locked it, although she knew if a Walker was determined enough, it would hardly be a deterrent. He was still there, watching her silently. The light was fading and she began to search the drawers and cupboards for candles or torches. When she finally found what she wanted under the sink, she turned to show him her prize, a large torch and a bag of tealights, but he had disappeared.

Once night had set in, a book cabinet had been slide across the front door, in case they had any unwelcome visitors. The area was deserted enough, but so had the farm and noone was feeling complacent anymore.

They shared out the tins between themselves and they ate straight from them, all of them too hungry to care about manners. Carol picked at her fruit cocktail, resisting the urge to yawn. She'd already eaten a tin of spagetti hoops and a candy bar and couldn't work up the energy to eat anymore. She'd already comandeered the long couch, most of the others would fit on the mattresses, kicking off their boots, they spread across them as they ate.

Daryl sat on the arm of the sofa, she could feel his eyes occassionally flickering over her. Silently, she passed over her half eaten can and he gave her a glare before finally accepting it, finishing the contents quickly. Everyone had began to still, minds and bodies weary after several days of hard travelling with very little rest.

Carol pulled the throws that lay folded neatly over the back of the sofa off and tossed one in his direction. He didn't say anything, so neither did she. She kicked off her shoes and stuffed a cushion under her head, drawing her feet under her, she balled herself up as tight as she could on one side of the sofa, leaving room for him on the other if he wanted it. She pulled the blanket up over her face and a few minutes later she felt him slump into the other side of the couch and she forced herself into taking steady breathes. She could feel her eyelids getting heavy and soon she was asleep.

She woke up briefly sometime in the night. A few of the tealights were still burning faintly and she could see Daryl's outline in the flickering light. He was breathing rhythmically, resting his face on one hand on the arm of the couch. She'd stretched out in her sleep, her feet were now in his lap, his other hand resting lightly over her bare ankles. Feeling embarassed that she'd put herself on him, even unconsciously, she drew her feet back and his fingers flexed against her skin. She stopped suddenly, frightened of waking him. She closed her eyes and tried to settle back down, forcing herself to forget about it. It was surprisingly easy.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Thank you for the reads/reviews/Tumblring.

TWDTWDTWD

When she woke up, she was alone on the couch. She was still stretched out along it, but her feet rested on cushion, instead of his lap. He'd thrown his blanket over her legs, she noticed. She looked back at the others, most were still asleep, but Rick and T-Dog were also missing, so she got up, stuffing her feet back into her sneakers as she rubbed her fists over her eyes. Making her way into the kitchen, the three men looked up at her from the kitchen table, maps spread across the surface.

"Morning." She greeted quietly with a nod of her head. Rick nodded at her and she rooted through the cupboards for a glass. When she found what she was looking for, she pulled one of the plastic bottles from the six pack on the kitchen worktop, pouring just a little water into the glass. They didn't know when they'd next find supplies, so she tried to take as little as she could.

She watched them as she drained her glass, they muttered to each other occassionally, T-Dog was jotting notes on a scrap of paper, their fingers trailing routes she couldn't see from her spot against the kitchen counter. They seemed to forget she was there as she rooted in some of the kitchen drawers, looking for anything they could take with them on the next leg of their journey. She pulled out matches and batteries, chewing gum and kitchen knives. Things like that always seemed to be around when they had Dale's RV. The man hoarded everything.

Eventually she exhausted the room of anything they could use and she looked back up at the table, where they continued to to work.

"I'm going upstairs to see if there's some clothes we can make use of." She told them finally, not waiting for an answer, simply because she didn't expect one, so absorbed they were.

She knew nothing had gotten into the house, but she still carried a bread knife in her hand as she headed up the stairs. She couldn't explain why. She'd never carried a weapon before and probably wouldn't be able to use it if she had to. After all, if she was any good at fighting back, she wouldn't have stayed with Ed all those years. Took all that abuse. Let him get away with it. The first door told her it was Toby's room and she only opened it enough to spot the junior bed against the wall before shutting it again. She'd spotted the family photos that hung in every room. Toby could've only been two or three. There was nothing of use in his room, she knew without looking.

She skipped the bedroom proclaiming to be Sarah and Annie's, choosing the door that didn't have a little wooden sign. The master suite. The bed was perfectly made and as she made her way to the wardrobes, she ran her hand over the satin cover. There was plenty to be had in the drawers. She ignored the summer dresses and sandals, brushing them aside in favour of sweaters and shirts, jeans and socks. The last person to wear those things was smaller than she, Carol noted. But they'd all lost weight in the last few days. The Greene girls were slight anyway and Lori was already painfully thin, despite being pregnant. Her own pants felt looser than they had when she put them on, several days ago.

She threw everything useful onto the bed, managing to find two pairs of winter boots aswell, although they were a size too small for her. Her sneakers would have to do her a little longer. She took one of the looser plaid shirts and a vest for herself, some socks and underwear. She had to hope that the jeans she could find would fit her. Turned out the previous owner also preferred slightly dressier clothes and there wasn't a pair of cargo pants to be found. There was only one practical coat, a navy waterproof with a fleece lining. She put it aside for Lori, the only other woman without a coat. It left her with the only other option, am emerald green dress coat. She smiled at it as she put it against herself and looked in the mirror, her hands grazing the gold buttons. It was pretty. The lady of the house had good taste. She pulled it away from her body abruptly when she heard footsteps on the stairs but relaxed when it was Lori who entered the room.

"Hey. You found plenty, I see." The other woman said, by way of greeting.

"Sure did." Carol picked the navy jacket up from the bed and handed it over.

"Thanks." Lori rifled through the pile of clothes on the bed, picking out things for herself. "We're gonna take it in turns to wash up in the river. Rick wants to move out as soon as we're all done. We're goin' to Fort Benning."

"Okay. Will you send everyone up to collect clean clothes? I'm not sure what you want to do about Carl. There's not much that'll fit him."

Lori scanned the pile on the bed, picking out a denim shirt that didn't look particularly feminine and some plain black socks. "We won't tell him which wardrobe these came from." She winked at Carol before leaving the room, her arms loaded with clothes for her family.

The others trickled in slowly, taking odds and ends that would fit them. Carol continued to work at clearing the bedroom and bathroom, taking everything of use and packing it into holdalls she found stashed under the bed. The last lady to have been here had a fancy for handbags and it made Carol yearn for her own that had gotten left behind the farm. That bag held everything. It was a catch-all for every little thing she found. Before, it was her wallet and keys, lipstick and notepads. Then when the world ended, hand sanitiser and bottles of water, hair ties and pocket knives. Or grenades. The memory of that day in the CDC, where she produced a hand grenade from its depths with shaking fingers almost brought a smile to her face. Her one useful act.

She would have a new one. Carol discarded the leather purses and sparkly clutchbags, pulling free a patchwork drawstring bag from the floor of the wardrobe. It wasn't as big as her last bag, but it would do. She pushed in chapstick and hand wipes immediately, swiped from the dressing table. A tube of hand cream and a scarf quickly followed and she pulled it closed. It took time to build up a bag of tricks.

"Hey, have you found any hair ties?" Beth had raced up the stairs, quickly rifling through the diminishing pile of clothes. She was the last, aside from Daryl. "Mine just broke." She held up the snapped elastic, to illustrate her question.

"No, but I'll look for some. There should be some somewhere. You go wash up." She told the young girl.

Beth pulled a pink sweater from the pile and a pair of jeans that looked like they would be spray painted onto even the smallest of the group's tiny frame. Carol raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. If it made her happy, then she would leave her to it.

"Beth, what size shoe are you?" She picked up the lace up boots and handed them over.

"Six." Beth took them and looked at them with distaste but she knew they would be better than her worn sneakers.

"Perfect. Go on, get going." Carol nodded to the stairs with a smile and the girl scarpered off as quick as she had come. She continued packing the last of the clothes into the bags, pulling out her own choices for Daryl. If he wanted to avoid her, she would let him, but she wasn't going to hang around waiting for him to pick out his wardrobe.

"Hair ties, hair ties..." She mumbled to herself, pulling open the dresser drawers. There were dozens of lipsticks and hair pins rolling around in them, but not a single hair elastic. Surely in the children's rooms there must be one, she had thought. She opened the door to the room at the back of the house, Lilly's room, so the sign said and regretted it the moment she did. She felt the bile rise up into her throat and for a split second she was sure she was going to vomit.

The pool of blood caked to the carpet was evidence enough of what happened in the room. The rocking chair lay toppled over, it's cushions scattered across the floor. There were no blankets in the cot, but the side had been pulled down, blood splatters on the bars. A teddy bear lay discarded near the rust coloured pool.

Carol needed to shut the door before she burst into hysterical sobs. She knew that she needed to walk away before it tipped her over the edge. She felt the tears brimming, her breathing becoming more ragged, but she couldn't seem to draw her eyes away from the horror scene. She wanted to lift her hand to the doorknob and pull the door shut, pretend that she had never seen this room, but she was frozen.

"I told you not to go in here." She jumped when she heard his voice, hard and cold in her ear. Daryl stepped past her to pull the door shut with a slam. It was as if the spell was broken, when he shut the door. Her gaze snapped to him, his face contorted into an expression she couldn't quite decipher. Anger perhaps? Mingled with something else she couldn't figure out.

She didn't say anything as she moved back to the master bedroom, he followed her and she handed him his bundle of clothes. She gathered up her own and ignored him as she headed down the stairs, desperately trying to think of anything other than the death of the the beautiful baby she could see in the family photos scattered around the house.

"Just you and Daryl left to wash up. Then we'll head out." Lori handed her a towel as she made her way through the back door.

Carol nodded. "Everything's packed upstairs on the bed. Beth wants a hair tie if you've got a minute to hunt one down." She didn't wait for Lori's response as she headed down the bottom of the garden to the river.

TWDTWDTWD

He could see her hands shaking as she pulled off her sneakers and socks. She sat close to the river her feet dipping into the cool water as she unbuttoned her blouse. The same feet he'd woken up with in his lap. He didn't remember how it happened, but he remembered her curling up so tight, he'd thought she'd never be able to uncoil herself, as if she wanted to sit as far away from him as possible on the couch. Her feet were icy cold. He turned away from her, allowing them both as much privacy as possible, although really, what did it matter any more?

He was fast, washing as quickly as he could and jamming the clean clothes on even though his skin was still damp. She'd picked them out for him, but she had made a good choice. It didn't feel right though, even though the others frequently scavenged something to wear, he'd always managed to make good with what he had.

He heard her curse softly under her breath and turned to see what was wrong, taken aback at the sight of her. She was half dressed, a pair of jeans rolled to her knees and only her bra on top and she was crouched in the water, scrubbing furiously at her hands and arms. Just as he was about to turn away, she lifted an arm and he caught a glimpse of pink. Carol had a tattoo. Under her breast, was a small flower, the edges of the leaves creeping under bra. He didn't recognise it but it was a typical girl's tattoo, the type that drunk girls would get on the spur of the moment. But still. Carol Peletier would be the last person he would expect to have a tattoo. She caught him looking at her and he turned away quickly, embarassed at having being caught. It didn't seem to bother her though, she just raised one eyebrow and carried on.

He busied himself with folding up his clothes and lacing his boots back up and when he looked up again she was fully dressed, wearing a green coat he hadn't seen before. It was like a dress, with a full skirt and gold buttons and he imagined that it was the only one available for her to be wearing it. It didn't fit her usual clothing choices. But then, what did he know? He'd convinced himself he knew this woman but he didn't know anything about her at all. She had a tattoo. Maybe she liked impractical and fancy coats. She was sitting on the verge, damp hair lying flat, the edges curling in the breeze, massaging cream into her hands, she seemed to be in a trance, her fingers running over her wedding ring repeatedly.

"You ready?" He finally asked her, standing up and pulling on his jacket and vest.

She nodded and with a motion so quick he almost missed it, she pulled the wedding ring from her finger, tossing it into the river. He definitely didn't know this woman at all.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Thank you for reading.

TWDTWDTWD

It felt like she was angry with him. Not angry, because he didn't think he'd ever seen Carol angry, it was too strong an emotion. Irritated? Disappointed? It radiated from her and it was an uncomfortable feeling, particularly because she was in such close proximity to him, on the back of his bike. He couldn't actually see her, just feel it, even though she hardly touched him. The hem of her coat occassionally whipped across his leg and he could see her hands resting on his waist if he looked down, ghosting over the edge of his vest, but hardly touching him, as if she couldn't bring herself to do it. She was leaning back, putting as much space between them as she could. If he turned suddenly, she would be thrown off the bike.

Thinking about her was making him angry. Was she pissed because he saw her with half her clothes off? Because that was fucking stupid. He wasn't no pervert, it was a glance in her direction, because he thought something was wrong. Or was it because he told her off for going in that baby's room? He was right to do that, her reaction was proof enough. He'd told them all and she was the only one to fucking ignore him. That was her problem.

He slowed the bike as they made the turn to head back onto the highway and he felt her grip tighten suddenly as the bike tilted.

"If you don't fuckin' hold on properly, you can get in a car, I ain't scrapin' you off the road." He growled at her as they slowed down, allowing the convoy of cars to catch up with them. He twisted round to look at her but she wasn't looking in his direction, she was gazing off into the distance, lost in her own world. "Hey!" He elbowed her and she suddenly came to, head turning to him so fast, their noses almost collided.

"What?"

"Hold on or get off." He snarled at her, turning back to get the bike moving again. He didn't actually give her the option of getting off before they moved down the highway. Still, he was reassured somewhat when he felt her press against his back, her hands meeting each other around his middle.

Rick had declared he wanted to keep their route to the back roads for as much of the journey as possible and although it added another eighty miles to their journey Daryl was inclined to think it was a wise move. The highways were frequently blocked, sometimes taking hours just to cover a couple of miles. No-one wanted to camp on the highway again, they stopped only long enough to siphon fuel and scavenge for food.

It had started spotting with rain when they pulled into an empty gas station for the night. There were several vehicles abandoned haphazardly on the forecourt and Carol got off the bike without him asking, heading straight for the car behind her, swapping places with Rick so that they could scope out the building.

It had been raided before, but there were a few dented tins scattered about. Two Walkers too, but they were dealt with easily. It meant sleeping on the cold tile floor, hidden between the aisles, away from the window, but it was better than outside. They had a few blankets between them aswell now.

He watched Carol pick at the tin of peaches with a plastic fork, nibbling on each segment for the longest time. She didn't eat before they left the house that morning and he knew she'd had only a cereal bar when they stopped to refill the gas tanks. Hershel and T-Dog had gone to look at the pumps after they ate, to see if they could get them switched back on to fill the cars and she sat with Beth, who's head rested in her lap, running her fingers through the young girl's hair, braiding and unbraiding it. They murmured to each other softly, so soft that he couldn't hear what they spoke of even though he only sat a few feet away but judging by the little giggles coming from the blonde girl's lips, Carol was cheering her up some.

Eventually, the noise died down, people beginning to drop down to sleep. Daryl couldn't relax, pacing the aisle nearest the door, keeping an eye out for Walkers. She was awake. He could tell, even though she had her back to him, blanket pulled around her shoulders. Eventually she pulled herself into a sitting position, looking around for him. Once she spotted him, he turned away from her, resuming his pacing up and down the store.

"I'll keep watch if you want to rest." She leant against the counter, her arms folded across her chest. "I can't sleep anyway."

He couldn't resist letting out a snort of disbelief, stopping his pacing right in front of her.

"Geek could be right up in ya face and you wouldn't notice shit." He whispered at her, glancing back at the rest of the sleeping group.

She looked a little bewildered but didn't say anything, pulling herself up to sit on the counter, drawing her feet to the edge of the surface, hands wrapping around her knees.

"Ya leavin' us." He spat out at her, resuming his pacing.

"I'm not going anywhere." She whispered back, shaking her head in confusion.

"You ain't here. You think I don't see it? They do too, even if they are too chicken shit to say somethin'." He waved his hand towards the others. "You're disappearin'. You need to get back here."

She didn't say anything, dropping her head to her knees, fingers running through her hair, making it stand on end. He walked away, considering the conversation over, when she took a deep shuddering breath and he knew without looking that she was holding back tears. He instantly regretted speaking to her because if there was one thing he hated more than anything it was crying. The biggest problem with this group was definitely how much fucking crying that went on.

"I feel like I'm going crazy." She whispered, face pressed into her knees, muffling her voice.

"Well, rein it in, for Christ's sake." His tone was harsh, he knew. But what the hell did she expect him to say? He was no good with this kind of crap.

"I'm trying! I'm not like you. I'm not strong enough for this. I don't see the point anymore and I can't just pretend."

"No point? How 'bout the fuckin' fact that you made it and _she_ didn't?" He couldn't bring himself to say her daughter's name, but Carol left out a soft gasp when he said the words. "You gonna dishonour her by treatin' life like it ain't a fuckin' gift?" He spat the words out at her, marching up to her so he was inches from her face. "You ain't the only one who lost someone. Ain't no therapist or fuckin' uppers anymore so you gotta make it on ya own. They need you." He threw his hand towards the group. "Lori, Beth...they need you. If that ain't enough...fuck, you are a burden. Havin' some worth here ain't just about wavin' a gun. Shit, try harder."

Carol just gaped at him as he continued his verbal assault. This was the most she'd ever heard him speak. Certainly to her. He was shaking with a barely concealed rage, attempting to stay quiet so they didn't disturb the others. She wanted to answer, but she didn't know what to say to him.

He didn't wait for her answer, he gave up his watch and bunked down with the others, crossbow by his side. She sat on the counter for a few minutes, considering his words. They didn't magically take the pain away, make her see the light or give her a renewed sense of purpose. But they helped. He thought she was worth saving.

She slid off the counter and settled down with the others, just a foot away from Daryl. He had his eyes closed, but she could tell he wasn't sleeping. She pulled the blanket over her, using her arm as her pillow and turned on her side to face him.

"Ok." She whispered to him. His eyes flickered open and he stared over at her. "I'll try harder." She turned over and settled down. She would try.

TWDTWDTWD

They were back on the road at dawn. Carol made herself useful by trailing up and down the aisles, picking up every tin, bottle, packet or bag. When she went outside to load up the cars with some of her spoils, she spotted Daryl on the back of a truck, abandoned on the forecourt. His bike was already on there and he was busy strapping it down. The rain has picked up it's pace in the night, but now, it had cooled down to a fine drizzle. The kind that stuck to the skin, slowly soaking one through.

He nodded at her as she made her way to the truck, pushing one of the bags through the open window and sliding it onto the bench. She nodded back to him and made her way to do the same to the other cars. She wondered if she would be welcome in his truck today, after last night. She had seen him angry before, he had ranted and raved at her. Once, she was sure he was close to hitting her. But last night was different, it was an anger unlike any she'd ever witnessed from anyone.

She loaded the last of the bags into the cars. Apparantly they were ditching one of the others in favour of Daryl's truck, to preserve fuel. T-Dog, Rick, Lori and Carl were in one, Glenn, Maggie, Hershel and Beth in another. Rick gathered them in front of the vehicles to give them the lowdown on what was going on. Daryl didn't stay for it, heading back into the gas station for the last of their things. Rick had clearly consulted with him first and that pleased her. It was nice to see other people realising his worth.

"We need to try and make it to Fort Benning early tomorrow. In the event that it's impossible to stay there and we get split up, everyone heads back to the Harris county border."

"And if it's a bust?" Glenn asked.

"Then we head North. Find somewhere to hole up for winter. Been wondering if the cold will slow the Walkers down or somethin'."

"I'm starvin', can we get breakfast first?" Maggie rubbed at her stomach as she spoke.

"Eat in the cars. Carol split everything up so there's something for everyone. We need to go as long as possible without stopping, we've got some serious ground to cover today. Glenn, if that tank needs refilling, make sure to pull us over before the highway. We do not want to stop out in the open if we don't have to."

Carol appreciated Rick's no-nonsense commands. That night where he admitted to killing Shane, he was half-crazed, frightening to watch. He'd collected himself, cementing himself as their leader.

"We gonna get outta here or what?" Daryl called out as he marched over to the truck. In one hand he had his crossbow, in the other; his saddle bag and her drawstring handbag. He settled the crossbow in the truck bed and chucked the bags in through the open passenger window. Well, Carol thought, that settled the issue of whether he wanted her in the truck with him or not.

She settled herself in the passenger seat as he spoke to Rick, shrugging off her damp coat and laying it out in the cab behind her to dry out. He climbed in a moment later shaking his wet hair like a dog and revving the engine. They didn't speak for the first couple of miles, it wasn't an awkward silence by any means, neither of them were chatterboxes at the best of times, but she felt she should say something to him. They hadn't exchanged a single word since the night before.

"You want breakfast?" She asked, reaching underneath her for the bag of food from the gas station. He made a noise that sounded like an agreement so she rifled through the bag, digging out a bottle of apple juice, a bag of chips and a candy bar. "Sorry, there isn't much you can eat one handed."

"Thanks." He grunted at her, taking the candy bar first. He watched her twist the cap off a bottle of juice and sip it. "You gonna eat somethin'?"

She shook her head. "I'll get something later, I'm not hungry." It was true, she had very little appetite anymore. She managed to choke something down every day, but it all tasted the same, dry and unappetising in her mouth. She knew she'd lost weight. The jeans she had put on the morning before were fitting her just right, despite being two sizes smaller than what she used to wear.

"I thought you said you were gonna try." His voice was accusing, he took his eyes of the road to send her a glare.

"I am."

"Then eat." It was a command, not a request. He turned back to the road, chewing on the candy bar like it was going to run away from him if he didn't eat it fast. She sighed and dug into the bag for a tin, nothing was particularly appealing to her, so she settled for the fruit cocktail and hunted in her drawstring bag for one of the plastic forks she had tossed in there earlier that day.

It tasted like nothing. Every mouthful seemed to take an age to chew, just to get it to slide down her throat. Still, she ate every mouthful and snuck a glance at him, seeing the frown slowly slide off his face with every bite. She even managed to bring the can to her lips and drain the can of the juice. She had to resist a chuckle when she saw the corner of his mouth turn into a smirk.

He had the chips open, resting on the bench against his thigh and he nudged the bag over to her after she tucked the empty can in the pocket of the truck door. Carol pulled a small handful from the bag, they were bright orange and the cheesy taste was overpowering. She ate three and dropped the others back into the bag. Her nose wrinkled with distaste as she swallowed them.

"Those are disgusting. Especially for breakfast. Urgh." She fished in her bag for some gum and popped one in her mouth.

"Breakfast of champions." He told her, sucking his orange stained fingers.

"That so? I'll continue being a loser then." She joked lightly, turning her head back to the road ahead.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Thank you for being awesome!

TWDTWDTWD

Fort Benning was a lost cause. Rick's car was at the front and he braked sharply on the brow of a hill, forcing both Daryl and Glenn to swerve. He cursed and swung the wheel of the car to pull up alongside Rick and chew him out for his shitty driving, but slammed his own brakes on instead.

Fort Benning was below them, dozen of buildings all crammed together and surrounded by a high wall that was topped with barbed wire. The heavy gates were half open and the place was swarming with Walkers. Literally hundreds of them.

"Fuck." He mumbled under his breath, fist slamming on the wheel. He turned to look out his window, to catch Rick's eye and see what he wanted to them to do, but the other man had his head resting on the wheel, clearly distraught.

"Look." Carol pointed to the bottom of the hill, where cars had piled up, rusting and abandoned. Plenty of people had tried for this place and failed. It wasn't the cars she was pointing out though, but the Walkers that were picking their way through, groaning and gurning as they made the slow trek up the hill.

He threw the truck into reverse, narrowly missing Glenn's car as he backed up to turn the car around. The other two cars quickly followed him and in minutes, Fort Benning disappeared from the rearview mirror. And with it, disappeared the last hope any of them had for some authority to rescue them.

They didn't stop driving until they made it well into Heard county, where they had to refuel. The rain had started up again, heavy and somber, reflecting the mood perfectly. They camped earlier than normal, another house this time and Carol waited in the car when Daryl got out, picking up his crossbow from the truck bed. She slid over to his seat in the driver's side to get a better view of the men going into the property.

She never really got a chance to drive since she left her home. Ed always took charge of that and then when they left the quarry, Rick took his turn. The truck was a manual, and she ran her hand over the gear stick experimentally. It took her back to memories of her first car, a heap of rust that required special care just to get the engine running. The stick always used to get stuck in third gear.

After what seemed like forever, Daryl came out of the house, signalling that it was safe to come closer and park up. He slung his bow over his back as he made his way down the driveway to come collect her. She wondered if he even knew she could drive. She turned the key in the ignition and the engine roared to life. With a slight crunch, she managed to get the stick into first gear and the car rolled forward as she lifted her foot off the clutch. It juddered as she tried to get the balance between the gas and clutch pedals when changing gears but she was pleased when she drove slowly past Daryl without stalling. He watched from his spot on the front lawn and she saw his sharp intake of breath when she wrenched the handbrake up before the car had completely stopped, bringing it to a shuddering halt.

He opened the driver's side door for her and she pulled the lapels on her coat up to shield her from the wet somewhat and grabbed the bags from the floor of the passenger side. He just looked at her as she gathered herself to make the run into the house.

"What?" She asked finally. "It's soaking, don't just stand there, you'll catch a cold." And with that, she slammed the door shut, racing into house behind Lori, her bag over her head to shield her from the rain.

TWDTWDTWD

This house instantly had a better feel to it than the last house she stepped into. It's previous owners didn't have any children for starters. A couple, the no-nonsense kind, judging by the decor. She only spotted a handful of pictures on the mantlepiece that indicated that they were perhaps in their fifties and the active sort. She didn't venture upstairs anyway, just in case, busying herself with the bedding that the others retrieved from the first floor instead. There was just two double mattresses and she shoved the couches about to make room for them on the sitting room floor. Carl came to her bearing a blow up mattress and she set to work with the foot pump.

Daryl had gone to hunt, so he told Rick. He hadn't had much chance since they left the Greene farm and she knew he was eager to get back to it. He insisted on going alone and she wanted to voice her protest. None of them knew the area, the likelihood of running into Walkers or some other danger but as if he knew she was about to speak he promised them he would be back in two hours.

Once she'd finished making up their beds, she made to help Lori and Beth in the kitchen, there was a traditional wood burner for cooking and she had to resist clapping with delight when she saw it begin to smoke. It had been too long since their last hot meal. The warmth was wonderful. She almost moaned with pleasure when she tested out the tap and cold water began streaming into the sink.

"Rick. Do you think we'll have enough time to wash clothes, dry them out in here?" It was Lori who asked the question. She had already confided to Carol that the smell of sweat and staleness that lingered on them all was making her even more nauseous than normal. They were all wearing their cleanest things, things that had been worn for three days. Everything else left had been worn even longer.

Rick considered it for a moment and nodded. "We can wait, if we have to." He pressed a kiss to his wife's temple before heading out of the room.

It took some time, but eventually she found some washing powder and a tub and settled herself in the small utility room to scrub at the clothes. The pile seemed to grow as one by one each group member trickled in with another bundle of cloth but she found herself not minding. It kept her hands and her mind busy. There had been far too little to do recently and she was trying hard to keep the bad thoughts away. She had promised to try.

She knew he was back when she began to smell meat cooking from the kitchen and a few minutes later he came in, his hands red with blood and speckled with dirt.

"What happened?" She frowned at him as he reached past her to get to the small sink in the corner of the room.

"Nothin'. Been guttin' dinner."

"Oh." There was nothing else to say to that. She kept working at the pile of clothes until he left, scrubbing the stains out as best as she could without a proper scrubbing board. She already had T-Dog in mind to wring each item out as best as he could before she constructed a washing line in the kitchen. The man was probably the closest thing to a wringer that she was going to get.

"Carol, dinner's ready." Maggie pushed her head around the door and let out a low whistle when she spotted the massive mound of clean, wet clothes. "You been busy."

"Well, it's got to be done." She smiled.

The kitchen was far too small for them all to be in it, but everyone swarmed about, eager to get their plate of hot food. It was an odd mish mash; a little rabbit, some pasta coated in a tomato sauce, something that looked suspiciously like macaroni cheese and tinned tomatoes. The smell of the meat made her mouth water and for the first time in what felt like a life time, she wanted to eat something.

Beth handed her a plate and she wandered off into the sitting room, where most of them seemed to be heading, a can of soda tucked under one arm. She sat on the window box, drawing her feet up and crossing her legs under her, settling the plate in her lap. The rain was hammering down now, although she couldn't see much, it was already dark and the curtains were drawn, just a sliver of the window was exposed.

The rabbit tasted as good as it smelt. It had been seasoned with what she thought was dried rosemary and she used her fingers to stuff every last bit of it into her mouth. When she realised that she was on her last piece, she chewed slowly, savouring the taste.

Daryl joined her as she sucked the grease of her fingers, sitting on the floor near her and taking a pull from a familiar brown bottle before starting his own meal.

"Hey, where's the beer at?" Glenn waved his fork at the bottle in Daryl's hand.

"Don't bother, man." Daryl scoffed at the younger man. "We all know you can't handle your drink."

Everyone laughed, not only because it was true but because Glenn didn't even deny it. And when T-Dog came in bearing the box of bottles and the opener, he snagged one quickly, popping it open and taking a gulp. T-Dog offered to everyone, only Lori and Hershel refused and when it came to her turn, she nodded, letting him pop the cap off and pass it over. She'd never been one for alcohol. Sure, in her college days, she'd drunk to excess, nights where she drunk so much she couldn't remember what happened. She recalled the day she finished her finals, where she and her roomates went out and got so drunk that she ended up with the stupid tattoo on her side. It didn't mean anything and according to her roommate who _did _have recollections of that day, she had chosen it simply because it was pretty. She'd grown to love it. On her younger self, when her skin was taut and her body leaner, she even thought it to be attractive. Sexy, almost. Ed had hated it. A tramp stamp, he called it. Still, it was hidden enough that he was the only one to have seen it. Apart from Daryl of course, although she couldn't be sure what exactly he was looking at, she thought it was the tattoo he spotted that day they washed together in the river.

Still, one beer couldn't hurt. Maybe it would even help her sleep. She usually woke up at least half a dozen times during the night. It tasted bitter in her mouth, but it disguised the taste of the food that she didn't want to eat, nothing would taste good after the rabbit. But she would eat it or risk a tongue lashing from _him_ again.

TWDTWDTWD

He couldn't recall ever seeing her drink before. Did she drink that night in the CDC? He couldn't remember, but then he was so shit-faced that night she could've been snorting coke in front of him and he wouldn't have noticed. She didn't seem the type to let go. Still, if she ate her food, she could drink what she liked.

He didn't want to hover around her, he felt like a nag and it was not in his nature to give a shit about someone else but someone had to give a shit about her. She'd all but said that she wanted to off herself and he wouldn't let that happen. Not just because of her, but because of everyone else. She was the mother figure of the group and many of them relied on her for their own emotional needs. He stood by his statement. This group _was _broken. They were slowly starting to repair themselves but if she left them now, they'd be back to fucked again.

And if there was an afterlife or some crazy shit, he figured she'd regret it. She'd gone through her whole marriage still standing, when Sophia was missing and she told him that she'd lost hope, she stayed alive. She wouldn't just opt out. She couldn't.

The Greene girls offered to hang all the washing out on a makeshift line in the kitchen but Carol insisted on helping them. She didn't sit still at all, after the clothes were pegged up, it was washing the dishes, then stoking the fire and lighting more candles. In the end, Lori forcibly dragged her away, telling her to rest.

She slept on a blow up mattress near the window, Beth next to her, curled up into her side. The younger girl had taken to following her around quite a bit recently and Carol didn't seem to mind. He took the armchair, legs hooked over one arm to get the most comfortable position possible. He was close to dozing off when he saw her move suddenly, sitting up and looking towards the window. She turned around, looking for him and her eyes snatched back to the window again.

"Did you see that?" She muttered urgently, pulling herself from the bed. "That light?"

Daryl sat up, following her gaze, when she moved to the window he leapt up and grabbed her by the wrist, pulling her down to the floor. He had seen it. Light moving back and forth outside, a torch? He put a finger to his lips and she looked up at him fearfully, but did as he asked. He looked through the gap in the curtains carefully.

There were two torches being flashed about and their owners were definitely living. "It ain't Walkers." He muttered down to her. The noise disturbed some of the others and he waved his hand at Rick, telling him to keep low. The figures were inspecting the cars and he saw one linger at the truck, running the light over his bike. Definitely male, they were both stocky and tall and although he couldn't hear them, he could sense friction between them, as if they were arguing. One went back to the truck, running the light over the body of a bike, an arm reaching out to touch the saddle. It was then, that Daryl felt his heart stop. He knew who one of the strangers was. The arm didn't have a hand.

He leant back on his knees. He felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. Rick came up up to him on his knees, his hand touching his shoulder and Daryl shrugged it off aggressively, an almost violent reaction. He looked down at Carol, who was hunched underneath him, hand wrapped tight around his wrist.

"It's my brother." He finally managed to choke out. "It's Merle."


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: Thank you for reading/reviewing/tumblring. Find me on Tumblr under SepticLovebite or hit me up with your user name! Yeah, Merle's back. This is the first time I have introduced characters that didn't feature in the Ricktatorship scene at the end of 2.13. Bear with me...

TWDTWDTWD

She froze at hearing his words. Merle Dixon was here. That bit of information was more frightening than any amount of Walkers outside their door. She looked up at him from the floor, she was backed up against the window box, knees jammed under her chin and he was crouched over her, eye pressed up against the gap in the curtains. She couldn't help but grab his wrist tight, her breathing shallow and ragged with fear.

"What? _Merle_? Are you sure?" Rick jostled them over to get a look at the strangers hovering outside. Carol peeked past Daryl's legs and she could see everyone else getting up, slipping on boots and jackets in case they had to make a quick getaway.

"I know my own fuckin' brother." Daryl snarled. He shook Carol off his arm and got up, picking up his gun and crossbow as he made to leave the room. Rick shot after him, grabbing him by the shoulder.

"Wait!" He whispered. "He's not alone. He might shoot before he knows who you are. We don't know how many of them there are out there!" Rick spoke furiously and Carol knew why. She'd heard the story of what had happened on that rooftop in Atlanta. And like Rick had thought, she believed that Merle was dead. How could a man escape all those Walkers, with no weapon and one hand? Daryl had never spoken of it but she knew he had always believed that Merle was alive. But if he had been alive all this time, why didn't he go back to the quarry for his brother?

Daryl smacked Rick's hand from his shoulder, turning to give him a look of disgust. "That is my _brother_." He opened the sitting room door, heading over to the front door to move their makeshift barricade. Rick cursed under his breath and made moves to gather his own weapons, signalling for T-Dog and Glenn to join him. She took another look through the gap in the curtains and she could see that the other men had heard the commotion, readying themselves behind a truck and switching the flashlights off.

It didn't take any thought at all to follow the men into the hallway. Lori pulled her back but she shrugged her off, taking a spot nearest the stairs, out of view of the men outside, but in plain view of Daryl. He didn't seem to notice her though, as he forced the dresser aside, studiously ignoring the people behind him. Finally, he got the door free, wrenching it open and kicking the screen door ajar. He had his crossbow on his shoulder and she heard the click of his gun, just in case.

"Finally fuckin' decided to show up, you asshole." He spoke to the open air, voice not a decibel higher than normal. There was no answer and Carol wondered if Merle had left. Daryl stepped out onto the porch, Rick just a footstep behind him, his own gun raised into the darkness.

"Didja miss me, baby brother?" The voice was crowing, Merle sounded way too pleased with himself. Carol couldn't resist sneaking a peek through the small window in the hallway but the angle meant she couldn't see Merle. She could see his companion though, a burly black man, wearing a red headscarf and a worn black leather coat, he had two guns on him, one held out towards the house, aimed at Daryl.

She'd had very little contact with Merle Dixon. When the group was bigger, the Dixon brothers kept to themselves, sometimes disappearing for days at a time then showing up with game for the group to cook. They kept their tents further apart from everyone else and hardly mixed. In fact, she could recall not even noticing Daryl was there for the longest time. Merle was the mouthy one, constantly arguing and throwing slurs at people who weren't white. Even if Ed did allow her to talk to the other men, she would always have avoided the Dixons. Merle made inappropriate comments to the other women, even popped one or two her way when Ed wasn't around. She knew abusive men, but Merle Dixon was a different league to Ed. She never really understood why the two brothers joined the group in the first place, when they didn't get anything in return from them.

"How did you find us?" She was pleased to see that Daryl didn't lower his weapon as he approached his brother, although his tone was altogether friendlier than she'd heard it a while.

"Saw ya a few miles down the road. Didn't know it were you then, but saw that bike o' mine through the binoculars. Still pussyin' about with these losers, I see."

Daryl didn't respond to that immediately and as he moved forward, she lost sight of him. "It ain't like that no more."

"Oh, ya memory gone soft as well huh? Good thing I ain't bearin' grudges no more." Merle let out a cackle.

"We came back for you." It was Rick who spoke now, stepping forward, disappearing from Carol's sight. She heard Lori gasp, holding back Carl at the sitting room doorway.

"Yeah, thanks for the ride." So he did know that they came for him. She heard the catch of a safety sliding back on the gun and she knew it was Daryl's .

"Who's your friend?" The man in question kept his pistol up, twitching slightly.

"This here is my buddy, Andrew. We've been holed up down in town." She glanced back out the window and she could see Merle now, he had a gun too, but he held it loosely in his hand, waving it about as he spoke.

"Just you two?" Daryl stood right in front of his brother now, a mere two feet away.

Merle nodded. "Few more back at camp though."

She heard the click of another gun safety going on and she saw T-Dog and Glenn relax their positions, following what must be Rick's lead.

"How about Andrew puts that gun away and you both come in out of the rain?" T-Dog and Glenn exchanged incredulous looks and when Carol turned to look back at Lori, she was wide-eyed, before pushing Carl into the sitting room and shutting the door. Carol shared her fear, Merle Dixon was a loose cannon. Two of the men who shared responsibility for his mutilation stood in front of him and he tells them he bore no grudges and suddenly he was deemed _safe_? The man named Andrew looked suspicious too, twitchy and nervous. She could see him being the type to get trigger happy. He looked nervously at Merle at hearing Rick's suggestion, muttering something she couldn't hear.

"Sure. Just gonna have a quick word with Andy here about mindin' his manners in other people's houses." She heard the crunch of footstep on gravel and she could see them walk off to the side, furiously hashing out an argument in whispered tones.

The men came in, closing the door a little.

"You think it's normal for your brother to not hold a grudge after losing a hand?" Rick asked, hands on hips.

Daryl turned his gaze from the men out on the front lawn, looking at Rick with scorn. "Count yourself lucky." He spat out, tucking his gun into the back of his pants. Rick gestured at Glenn and T-Dog to leave them. He didn't ask the same of Carol and she wondered why but she didn't openly question it, sitting herself on the bottom of the stairs.

"Daryl." Her voice was soft and she didn't realise she had even said his name until he turned to look at her, as if noticing her for the first time. "You know Merle better than anyone." He nodded at her and she wondered if he thought she was going to support his decision on this. She wasn't. Merle was dangerous and Daryl didn't see it yet. But it had to be handled delicately. "Is that kind of response...normal?"

"His friend is black. You saw what he did to T-Dog. I knew your brother for one day. But it was enough to know that he doesn't play well with people. He especially doesn't play well with people who aren't white. There's something not right about that." Rick waved his arm towards the door gesturing at the two men. Daryl didn't say anything but she could sense he was angry, fury radiating from his skin. "They're not to come into the sitting room. I'm gonna fill the others in, before they get here."

Rick sighed and rubbed his hands over his face before leaving her and Daryl alone in the hallway.

"That's my brother." He just looked at her and the words almost sounded like he was pleading.

She nodded. "He's been fine all this time. He could've made it to the quarry that day, he had the van. He didn't." She heard the footsteps return on the gravel and she got up from the steps. "Whatever you think, I trust you." She placed her hand on his arm, he froze under her touch but she didn't remove it.

The door creaked open and she had to force herself not to jump away from the two men behind it. Daryl just nodded at them, moving to stand in front of her. A gesture she wasn't sure that he was even aware of. She released his arm and he gave her a gentle nudge towards the sitting room.

"Go back to bed." He murmured at her, leading her forward with a palm at the back of her neck. Rick came out of the room as she went in and as she shut the door she heard Merle chuckling behind her.

"Gotta yaself a girl now, Daryl?" He laughed, not bothering to keep his voice down.

Carol only shuddered as she picked her way back through the mattress to her bed, the back of her neck burning from his touch.

TWDTWDTWD

Daryl didn't know what to think. He'd never given Merle up for dead. He stood by his statement made back in Atlanta. Only Merle could kill Merle. He had expected him to show up at the quarry after escaping Atlanta. Why wouldn't he? There was nothing else better to go to. Merle had never let a slight go unpunished. Losing a hand was a damn fucking big slight.

He'd helped with the burning and burying of the dead Walkers because it passed the time whilst waiting for him to come back. Except he didn't. It took them nearly two days to get themselves together for the CDC. Merle was alive and he chose not to come back. Daryl had tried to push the thought from his head, but it was true. Merle left him.

He sat at the small square table next to Rick, Merle opposite him. Andrew was a twitchy fucker, his hand constantly ghosted over the guns at his hips, eyes shooting back between them all. Daryl had seen Merle high enough to recognise another tweaker when he saw one. Addicts were a dangerous kind of person, he knew, because nothing meant more than the next fix.

Rick popped the caps on the left over beers, trying to show willing, but Daryl could sense the tension coming from him. Rick was scared.

"How many of you made it here?" Merle leant back in the chair, his handless arm, slung over the back.

Rick opened his mouth to answer but Daryl cut him off. "Enough of us."

Merle smirked. "Never found that family of yours then, Officer Friendly?"

"They're in the next room." Rick answered, fiddling with the label on the bottle. "Safe."

And so it went, back and forth. An awkward, stilted conversation where neither side of the table was prepared to give away their hand. Merle seemed to find everything amusing and it was unnerving. Finally, Daryl realised that his brother wasn't going to give away the game whilst Rick sat at the table.

"I wanna word with my brother. Go check on the women or somethin', will ya?" He tried to keep his tone casual and Rick immediately bristled, unhappy with the request that Daryl tried not to imply was an order. "'S fine." He told him firmly.

Rick nodded. "Five minutes." He scraped back the chair and shut the door behind him. Daryl didn't doubt for a minute that he was standing by the door listening to every word.

"You have more women here?" Andrew spoke for the first time since they arrived and his voice was soft, feminine almost. Completely at odds with his appearance and Daryl thought it were downright fucking creepy.

"Sure, he does. Got himself a girlfriend too. I bet her husband ain't takin' too kindly to that." Merle laughed at Daryl's face, one of disdain.

"Well, I'm sure he would if she ain't gone an' put a pickaxe in his head." He didn't need tell Merle that Ed had already been dead. He didn't want him thinking of her as helpless. He knew he shouldn't have touched her in front of him. It was an instinctive reaction, to get her away from him. A stupid pissing contest, letting Merle know to back off. Except past experience told him that it did nothing of the sort. Anything someone else had, Merle took, whether he wanted it or not. "And you don't need to worry yaself 'bout me an' her."

"She can come too, if ya like?" He offered. "Especially if you shared."

Daryl had to grit his teeth, knuckles turning white as he gripped his bottle of beer.

"What are ya doin' here?" He asked finally, anything to get off the subject of Carol.

"A guy can't come see his baby brother?" Merle sat forward, leaning closer.

"You coulda seen me back at the quarry. We were there two days after we got back from Atlanta. You rode out." Daryl pushed the empty bottle aside, sliding back in the chair to recover some of the distance between him and Merle.

"I had things to do. And I'm here now, ain't I? Now, the question is, are ya gonna come with us to our camp? Bring your woman if ya like. She got a li'l girl too, ain't she?" Daryl's gaze flickered over to Andrew, whose eyes brightened at Merle's words. And he knew there and then that going with these men was something that would _never _happen.

"I gotta talk it over with the others first." He answered finally.

Merle shook his head at that. "We ain't extendin' this offer to all of y'all. Just you. We're a...selective bunch, ya could say. We ain't in the habit of takin' in folk that like to feed others to the Geeks."

Daryl looked at his brother and sighed. This was gonna descend into a shit storm pretty damn quick if he didn't play it right.

"I ain't just gon' walk out on 'em. I can't."

For the first time since he arrived, Merle didn't have a smirk on his face. It slid from his features, replaced with a grimace. He leant forward in the chair, hand bracing the table.

"They ya friends now, are they? I'm sure they ain't done shit for ya. They certainly didn't for me." He thrust his stump in Daryl's face to make his point. "You can walk out tha' door with us, bring your little piece if ya gotta, her brat an' all. We take real good care of our own. I can take of the rest for ya. Don't you worry yaself with what they gotta say."

"That right? I know what game you gon' play. You ain't bin here the last few months. You don't know squat about me an' them." He made to say more, but thought better of it. "I'll talk to 'em. You gotta leave and come back tomorrow."

"Ya gotta think this over or somethin'?" Andrew asked.

"Butt out, you." Merle shot at the man, kicking Andrew's chair. "If they all come, that make ya feel better?"

Daryl nodded once, quickly. He itched to get them out of the house immediately, it was no longer safe. "Where's ya camp?"

"There's a prison a few miles away." Merle chuckled.

"_Prison_? Merle, you spend half your life in the pen and now ya moved back in?" Daryl had to let out a laugh at this. The irony was just too much.

"I know, I know. It keeps tha' geeks out though. We only run out to stock up on supplies."

"Lemme talk to them. Ya come back tomorrow?"

Merle nodded, seemingly satisfied with Daryl's response. They got up from the table and headed for the door. Daryl heard the hushed voices in the living room drop when he opened the kitchen door.

"Hey, you still got my stash?" Merle asked, as if it were an afterthought, although Daryl knew better. The drugs were probably what he was looking for on the bike in the first place. Not like he could use the motorcycle anymore.

He watched them as they left, standing at the porch. They'd parked some distance away, which explained why no-one heard the engines, particularly over the rain. Once they left the boundary line of the property, he shut the door. He made his way into the sitting room, ignoring them as they jumped up to ambush him with words.

Carol was sitting on the window box, peeking out the window to watch the retreating men. He hushed the others with his hand and sat beside her, nudging her so that he could watch through the gap instead. He waited until he could see the faint glow of the headlamps in the distance, the car moving away, before turning back to the rest of the room. Carol drew her knees up, her feet brushing his thigh.

"We gotta get out of here. Tonight." He told them with a sigh.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Sorry for the bigger than usual gap in updating. Truthfully, this story is a lot harder than anything TWD I've written. I needed a little break, hence the publishing of  
Head and Heart (there'll be a chapter two for that, FYI). Writing this chapter, was an absolute joy and I have reignited my faith that I can finish this story confidently! Thank you for reading/reviewing and tumblr'ing.

TWDTWDTWD

"We've gotta get out of here. Tonight." Daryl sighed and Carol's breath hitched in her throat. The group converged on him simultaneously, each questioning voice climbing in volume, attempting to be heard over the one next to it. She had her feet resting under his thigh, she could feel his leg shaking up and down, a clear indication of his discomfort with the situation.

"Quiet!" Rick ordered them all, stepping in front of she and Daryl, arms outstretched in front of the others, acting as a barrier. "What happened?"

Daryl let out another sigh, hands drumming an erratic rhythm on his knees. "He wanted me t'go to his base. Just me. He didn't like my answer. He's pretendin' it's fine but it ain't. He's holed up in a prison. I told him t'come back tomorrow. Buy us some time."

"You think he'll come back with more of them?" Rick asked.

Daryl shrugged. "Probably. He said there were only a few of 'em, but he's lyin'. Said the Walkers couldn't get in to the place. Means there's probably a fuckin' army of 'em. And that other guy...he's a con, smackhead by the way he was twitchin'. And he got way too excited on hearin' 'bout our women." He stood up and pushed through them to start packing up their things.

Carol shuddered at the thought. The thought of a group of sick men coming in to their temporary home and forcing themselves...she couldn't even finish the thought, it made her feel ill. She followed Daryl's lead, stuffing her shoes on her feet quickly and finding her coat.

"Right. I want to leave in a half hour. Get everything in the cars." Rick ordered them all and immediately everyone sprung into action. "Hershel, can you get the map out, find where this prison is, we need to be heading in the opposite direction." Hershel put down the blanket he was folding up, nodding to Rick and setting to his task.

She was pulling their still damp clothes from the makeshift line in the kitchen, stuffing them haphazardly into bags, not caring whose was who's when she saw Rick pull Daryl aside, interrupting him from his task of transferring the food from the kitchen to the cars.

"I need to know, are you comin' with us?" Rick's voice was low, but not so quiet she couldn't hear him from across the room. Her hands froze for a split second and his gaze flickered over to her before snapping back to Rick.

She hadn't even considered that he wouldn't. Call her naive or stupid, but she never doubted where his loyalties lay. Why would he have left his brother walk out the door without him if he wanted to leave them? But now she wondered. Did he want to leave them? Did he want to leave _her_? Was he simply giving them a head start?

"Are you fuckin' kiddin' me, Rick?" Daryl didn't lower his voice like Rick did. "You think I'd be standin' here? My brother wants to shoot you and he fuckin' will. Stop wastin' time with pointless chit chat." He snarled at the other man before storming out with a plastic drum of water.

Rick looked at her from across the room. Carol had made very little contact with the sheriff since they left the Greene farm. She had said things to him, things that she felt justified in thinking at the time, but perhaps they were things she shouldn't have said, at least not in the way in which she said them. His expression was a mixture of defiance, his chin jutting out as if daring her to chastise him for questioning Daryl's loyalty and worry, maybe he worried that he had pushed Daryl from the group and into Merle's waiting arms. It was an expression that was mingled with exhaustion and Carol appreciated truly, for perhaps the first time, the difficulties Rick must be facing.

"He'll get over it." She offered him the olive branch. An apology, perhaps. She couldn't bring herself to apologise directly for her past behaviour towards him, because she wasn't sorry for having her own opinion and actually _voicing_ it, for a change. "If it were you, he would ask the same question."

Rick nodded, a hand rubbing over his worn face. "You don't think it'll send him the other way?" He asked as if she were some sort of authority on all things Daryl Dixon.

She shook her head. "He'd've gone already if that was the case." Daryl was angry because he was giving up on Merle. Not because he could be dead but because Merle wasn't what Daryl needed now. Daryl had changed, but Merle hadn't. It was like he was grieving. Or so she thought, sometimes she thought she could read Daryl like a book and then other times, she doubted that even knew him at all.

Rick nodded once more, taking the bags of clothes from her and leaving her alone in the kitchen. Beth came to help her with the last of the clothes and together they managed to haul the last heavy, wet bag into the boot of Glenn's car.

"We all done, here?" Rick asked them. He, Glenn and Daryl poured over the map on the coffee table, checking over the route Hershel had planned out for them.

"We're done." Carol told him, reaching for her drawstring bag. Beth wandered to the bathroom and she eyed the girl, hoping she'd pick up the pace a little so they could get out there.

She watched the men a moment, discussing meeting points if they got lost, alternate routes if roads were blocked. She finally heard Beth flush the toilet upstairs and now she knew they were ready.

"Guys, we got company!" T-Dog jetted in from the front door, shotgun in hand. "We gotta go now!"

"Fuck!" Daryl spat out as Rick grabbed the map and began shepherding them out the door. He began counting heads and Carol raced up the stairs to grab a bewildered Beth and drag her out the door. Glenn's car was too far away for the young girl to run, so she pulled her towards Daryl's truck, shouting to Maggie that she had her sister safely.

As she pushed Beth in the cab through the driver's side, she could see the headlamps of several cars in the distance. Her heart raced and she started the ignition of the truck as Daryl came hurtling through the door, pushing the shot gun into her hands so he could get the vehicle moving.

Carol watched the lights in the distance approach them through the rear view mirror, the blood pounding in her ears. Daryl was cursing under his breath as he forced the truck to speeds it wasn't used to and Beth had started sobbing on the other side of her, gasping and sniffling. She clutched the young girl's hand, trying to soothe her but the reality was that she was terrified herself. They were being chased in the dark, in an area they didn't know and there was nowhere to hide.

And as if from nowhere, headlights appeared in front of them, hurtling in their direction. They were being ambushed from all sides. Rick and Glenn were in front of them and Rick was the first to swerve off the road, bouncing down a dirt track at an alarming pace. Glenn followed and Daryl made to do the same, but as he swung the wheel around, there was an almighty bang and it took Carol a second to realise that the car heading in their direction had clipped them, sending the truck into a spin.

There was no time to panic, Beth's screaming rang in her ears as they slammed into wooden fencing from the rear, forcing the truck to stop with a thud. As it came to a stop, her head hit the dashboard and all she could see was white as she passed out.

She came to less than ten seconds later, Daryl shaking her, tapping a hand across her cheek, yelling her name over and over.

"I'm alright." She managed to mutter, pushing his hand away. She turned to look at Beth, who's screaming had dulled to ragged sobbing. She put her hand to her forehead and her hand shook when she saw blood on her fingers. Daryl was panicking beside her, pulling out his hand gun and checking the clip.

"Take it." He thrust it at her, wrapping her unwilling hand around it. "Safety's here." Carol felt the truck cab spinning as she tried to take in his words. "Carol! Focus." Her gaze snapped to him, nausea hitting her like a ton of bricks. "Take the gun, lock the door an' if another car pulls up, you get the fuck out of here."

She blinked, realising that he was intending to leave them. Beth came to the same conclusion at the same time and her crying increased in pitch.

"You can't leave us!" She sobbed at him, leaning over Carol to clutch his arm. He shook her off deftly, focusing back on Carol. She looked up out the windscreen and she saw two men get out of the car that hit them, one was wielding a gun, the other a baseball bat.

"I gotta get rid of 'em. More will come if I don't." He told her, picking up the shot gun on the floor of the truck. "Lock the door." He commanded her. "Shoot anythin' that ain't a member of our group. _Anythin'._"

Carol nodded, not trusting herself to speak without sobbing. She had yet to shed a tear, in too much shock to do anything but cling to the gun he had passed to her. As he opened the door, she grasped his arm, eyes wide, trembled breathing. "Be careful." She murmured and he nodded, slamming the door behind him. She immediately pushed the lock down and Beth mirrored her action.

She took a deep breath, trying to collect herself, will herself not to pass out, like she felt she could quite easily do. She watched him as he walked past the front of the cab, gun raised. "Get down." She ordered Beth. One of the men was the man Andrew, the one Daryl had said was interested in women. He clutched the baseball bat, edgy as he made his way to Daryl.

Beth scrambled to the floor, knees pressed to her face. "You have to stop crying, Beth." Carol ordered. Andrew looked to her, eyes gleaming in the moonlight and he broke into a grin that chilled her to her bones. She appreciated having the gun now, because she would rather turn it on them both than leave alive with these men.

TWDTWDTWD

Daryl didn't have a plan when he got out of the truck. All he knew was that they were never going to get away from the other car without them following. The cars that were behind them had gone in the other direction, chasing after the other two vehicles in their convoy. If he managed to get rid of these two, they'd be free.

"You better back off, I'm pretty sure my brother is gonna have somethin' to say 'bout ya wavin' that gun in my face." It was a long shot, but he saw the way Andrew deferred to Merle, he figured his brother commanded some sort of respect among the group. He always did, wherever he went.

"I'm pretty damn sure your brother told me that you'd be waitin' back at the house for us. Seems you had other plans." It was the other man that spoke, a skinny white guy with glasses, definitely didn't seem like the kind of guy who landed in jail. But he was the one wielding the most dangerous weapon, so Daryl kept his gun on him.

"Yeah, somethin' came up."

"That your girl an' her kid in the truck?" The man asked, gun waving towards the vehicle.

"Don't ya worry 'bout who's in my truck. I'm the one holdin' the gun."

"We got orders to bring you and them two back alive." The man told him, gesturing for Andrew to go to the truck. Andrew made his way over, smirk on his lips.

"You go anywhere near them and I'll rip out ya fuckin' throat 'fore I shoot ya." Daryl snarled as the man made to pass him. Andrew stopped, glancing back at the other man, after all, Daryl had a gun and he only had a bat.

"You ain't gon' do that, baby brother." Merle stepped out from behind the car, where he had come from Daryl didn't know. He had a gun tucked in his waistband, but he didn't draw it.

"What the fuck is this, Merle?" Daryl spat out.

"I could ask ya the same. Runnin' out on me? That's pretty low." Merle chuckled.

"You mean like ya did me? Times a-changin', I'm changin' with it. I ain't gonna argue with ya."

"Oh ho ho, that right? Renounced your past, confessed ya sins an' become best buddies with the Sheriff, that 'bout right? Got yaself a little family now too." Merle's chuckle turned sour, his face grimacing. "They ain't ya blood Daryl, I am. They don't know ya like I do, 'cos if they did, they'd be runnin' from ya. They'd figure it out sooner or later."

"Shut up." Daryl snarled, walking closer to his brother. "You want me me dead, that it?"

"Hell no! I only want the two fuckers responsible for my hand dead. I want ya to come with us. And ya little family, hell, you'd be a hero if ya showed up with them. Alotta them guys ain't left that place in years." Merle opened his arm wide, as if welcoming him. Daryl resisted spitting at his brother. He knew exactly why those men wanted Carol and Beth and over his dead body that would happen.

It was then he realised that Andrew wasn't where he should be. The gun shot that rang out after that sudden realisation deafened him and his heart stopped.

TWDTWDTWD

Carol watched the scene from the truck with horror. Beth whimpered beneath her and she tried to soothe her with a hand stroking her hair. When Merle appeared from behind the car she could've died on the spot. Three against one was not good odds.

Then Andrew caught her gaze. He licked his lips and smiled at her, making his way to the truck. Daryl had warned him off before but with the arrival of Merle, he was distracted. She tried not to panic as he approached the passenger side. The doors were locked and she had a gun. She pulled Beth over to her, the young girl tucking herself behind Carol. It was too late when she realised that the passenger window wasn't rolled up all the way.

Andrew spotted it instantly, pushing his fingers through the small gap and forcing the window down. He was a large man and it didn't take much to get it down halfway. He leant through to pull the lock up and in a second, the door was open.

"Hello ladies." He muttered.

Beth had gone incredibly quiet, scrabbling and clinging to Carol's waist. Carol fumbled for the gun she was sure was on the seat under her but she couldn't find it. "Leave us, please." She begged.

"Nuh huh." Was all he said as he reached in, grabbing her foot. He dragged her along the seat, out enough to grasp her by the shirt front and she kicked and fought against him, digging her nails into his hands to get him to release her.

"You bitch." He spat at her, but he didn't let go, pulling at her shirt so that buttons popped off, exposing her chest to him. He laughed at her, one hand grabbing her breast, pinching the skin through her bra so hard she thought he would make her bleed and without thought, she spat in his face, clawing her way free with a ferocity she'd never felt before. He grabbed her by the neck, pressing his mouth to hers, dry lips that forced her mouth open, biting at her own lips to push his tongue in. She tasted her blood and she pinched and pulled at whatever skin of his she could reach, finally biting his tongue to free her mouth. She twisted away and he swore at her, using his knee to try and brace her legs down, his hand went to her throat, choking her.

Finally, she saw the gun, it had slipped under the gas pedal. She looked up at Beth, who seemed frozen in horror, flattened up against the door. She didn't want to draw attention to the gun, he seemed unaware they had it and as she twisted to reach for it, he grabbed her back, hands pulling at the waistband of her jeans and she was absolutely convinced that he intended to rape her there and then.

The thought spurred her on and with a final kick that landed on his solar plexus she managed to grasp the gun as he got a grip on her and pulled her back. She twisted around, bringing the gun up to his face. There was a brief expression on his face, one of horror, but she didn't let it linger. She pulled the trigger without hesitation.

TWDTWDTWD

Daryl turned to the sound of the gunshot behind him, as did Merle and the other one, looking to see what happened. Andrew was slumped, half in the passenger side and he saw two sneakered feet kicking his limp body out. He turned back to his brother and without thinking about his next move, he shot the man whose name he didn't know in the chest. He tumbled to the ground, gun clattering beside him.

Daryl lifted the gun to Merle's head. Merle raised his hands in the air, surrendering.

"Hold up now, baby brother. Don't be doin' somethin' stupid." He let out a thin chuckle, but Daryl could see right through it. Merle was scared.

"Daryl." Carol's voice was trembling, but he didn't turn to look at her, eyes trained on his brother. Merle's only weapon in reach was the gun at his hip and he didn't want to give him an opportunity to reach for it.

"You two alright?" He called out to her, watching Merle's fingers twitch in the air.

He heard her feet on the gravel, approaching him. She finally breathed out a noise that sounded like a yes. And he let out a sigh of relief.

"Get the shotgun." He gestured to the fallen body of the man before them. She was just a few footsteps behind him and she did as he asked, her green coat swishing in the wind, spotted with the rain that still fell.

She turned around to walk back to him and he took a step back in shock when he saw her from the front. The wound on her head trailed blood down the side of her head and she had a mark on her lip, blood dripping from her mouth. Her hands were covered in bloodly smears, where he was sure there would be cuts underneath. Her shirt gaped open, exposing her bra and he could see bruises forming on her stomach already as he took in the sight of her.

"Fuck." He spat out, training his gaze back on Merle.

She moved faster to get behind him, recognising his fury.

"Throw your fuckin' gun over here or I blow your brains out."

Merle glanced at him and at Carol, returning his gaze to his younger brother.

"Now, I'm sorry 'bout him. He needs to learn some manners. Guess he learnt the hard way." He gestured to the handgun Carol held loosely in one hand.

"Get in the truck, get the ignition running." He murmured to her and she nodded, turning away. He didn't say anything to his brother until he heard the engine rev on the truck, he heard her scrape it into first gear and the creak of the fence as she pulled it free. Three seconds later, he heard her wrench the handbrake up, waiting for him.

"If you give me the gun, I'll leave ya the car." He told him, trying his damnedest to keep his voice steady.

"Now, come on Daryl. You're gonna leave ya big brother, in the middle of nowhere, unprotected?" There was no laughter in his voice anymore, all the jokes had gone.

"Yeah an' you can count yaself fuckin' lucky. Ya get to keep ya life 'cos ya my brother. Ain't no other reason. But when I drive out here, you ain't kin no more. I ain't never gon' see you again."

"Oh and they are ya family?" Merle pointed at the truck.

"Damn fuckin' straight." He spat out. "Gun."

"No. You ain't even got the balls to do it." Merle back up a little, returning to the car. His hand went for his gun and Daryl knew that it was a case of kill or be killed. He remembered his thoughts from earlier that night. _Merle never let a slight go unpunished_. And Daryl had chosen the group. He had chosen _her_.

He shot Merle in the leg before he bottled out and with a cry, his big brother fell to the ground. He ran over to him, pulling the gun from his hand as Merle cried out, cursing and screaming in agony.

"Fuck you." Daryl uttered, turning away and jogging back to the car. He didn't look back as he got into the driver's side. Carol sat in the middle, Beth tucked tight into her side, the guns resting in her lap. She looked at him with an expression he couldn't fathom, eyes wide and watery.

"You ok?" He asked over Beth's sobs, although he found himself irritated with the girl immediately. She didn't have a scratch on her whilst Carol sat there covered in blood as she comforted her.

Carol nodded pulling her left arm free, she flung it round his neck, dragging him to her. He clutched her back, his hand finding her neck, he pressed his face into the crook between her shoulder and neck, lips brushing the skin there.

Eventually, he pulled away, throwing the car into gear and pealing down the dirt track without a second glance to the groaning man behind them. He took her hand, clutching it tight as they made their way on, to find the rest of their group.


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: Another larger chapter. Now I'm in the mood for all this angsty hurty Carol and Daryl the words are coming out like projectile vomit. Thank you for reading/reviewing/tumblr'ing.

TWDTWDTWD

It took almost two hours to reach the others. The three of them hardly exchanged a word in the truck the whole way there. Beth had fallen asleep, she had scrunched herself into a ball, her head resting in Carol's lap, hands twisting the edges of Carol's coat close to her face. She stroked the young girl's hair rhythmically. She seemed so much younger than sixteen now her tears had left tracks down her smooth cheeks.

Carol was pressed up against Daryl, her hand resting in his lap, tangled up in his. He only pulled free to change gear occassionally. He seemed to know where they were headed, even without a map and she didn't question it. She had always trusted him, but tonight, tonight cemented the fact in her heart. She would never question anything he ever did.

The pounding in her head had returned when she finally had time to think about it. But she wasn't dizzy any longer and it did begin to ease off, thankfully. The last thing they needed was a serious head injury. Everything else was less troubling. There was an awful lot of blood but Carol suspected it wasn't as bad as it looked. Her lip had swollen, she could feel it pushing against her teeth and the taste of blood, both hers and Andrew's, was beginning to bother her. She'd tried to take a sip from a bottle of water that was stashed under the bench, but it was too sore to press the plastic rim to her lips, so she put up with the taste. Her neck was sore, as was her stomach and her breast, she was confident that by tomorrow they'd be black with bruises. Her hands were bright red, stained with blood but a lot wasn't her own and most of the cuts were inflicted fighting him off. Overall, she'd got away a lot easier than she could've.

Not that Daryl saw it that way. She could tell he was trying desperately not to look at her like she was dying. She knew she must look a fright and he looked at her in disbelief when she told him she was alright.

She had asked him if he was ok, but he didn't answer her. He shouldn't be alright. He just shot his brother and left him for dead. He just squeezed her fingers that little bit tighter, eyes fixed on the road ahead.

She nudged Beth awake when she saw Glenn's car parked up just as they crossed the border into Alabama, their final meeting point. From what Carol could see, only Maggie and Glenn were in the car. Beth scrambled for the door handle, desperate to greet her sister, but Maggie threw a warning hand out the window and Glenn pulled off, expecting them to follow.

"Where's Rick and the rest?" She murmured to Daryl. Surely they must have made it? It was almost dawn now, but it seemed like the last time she saw them was days ago, not a few hours.

"Hershel ain't in their car, he definitely got in it. They musta holed up already." He muttered back and as if Glenn could hear their words, they turned down into a dirt track and Carol could see a house in the distance, flickering light in one of the downstairs windows. The door flung open as they approached, the rest of the group gathering to witness their arrival.

Beth hopped out before they could even park up, racing to clutch her father, sobbing the whole way. Carol let out a sigh of contentment, some safety at last, for however long, was a blessing and a relief.

Daryl opened the door without letting go of her hand and she realised she would need help to get out of the high cab of the truck, sitting still for such a length of time meant her bruised bones were aching as she moved.

"Did you get into a fender bender? Dude, what the hell happened?" Glenn came over, shotgun in hand and did a double take when he saw Daryl helping her step down off the running board. Carol clutched her ruined shirt with one hand, leaning on Daryl with the other. "_Shit_. What the hell happened? Are you ok, Carol?"

He leant in to touch her shoulder, but she recoiled before he made contact. It was a reaction she couldn't control. She didn't fear Glenn, the boy was a sweetheart but the way he barrelled closer to her was unnerving. He backed up on seeing her face, turning back to Daryl for explanation.

She looked up to see the others on the porch, Lori had a hand over her mouth, looking down at them with horror. Carol averted her gaze as she and Daryl hobbled up the steps, ignoring them all, because if she saw another horrified look she would burst into tears and that would only make her pounding head worse.

"Daryl." Rick followed them in, he had been half listening to Beth's ramble about how they nearly died and Carol shot a man in the face. She was babbling to her father so fast that Carol could only pick out the odd word. Carol. Choking. Blood. Gun. Dead. It seemed like a good summary.

"Did you find Merle? We didn't see him or the other one." Rick lead them into the kitchen, where Lori had clearly been attempting to hang clothes. Carol wondered how long they'd been here, hours by the look of things. There was fire in another room, she could feel the heat coming from behind her, the food was lined up on the kitchen counters.

She look up at Daryl as she eased into the chair at the kitchen table and he studiously avoided the question. He looked back at her and she knew he was holding back. Holding back anger, tears or fear. She couldn't tell.

"We saw them both." She answered Rick, words slurring slightly from her fat lip.

Hershel pulled himself away from Beth, inspecting the cut on her forehead. "I hit my head on the dash when we crashed." She explained. "They forced us off the road." She swallowed thickly. She would have to be the one to tell the whole sorry story. "Daryl got out to go...deal with them. There was the one from before, some other guy and Merle. Andrew forced his way into the car. I...that's how I got the rest of the..." She waved her hand over herself and she saw Rick turn away in revulsion, he was the first to realise what she meant. What Andrew wanted to do.

"I dropped the gun." She looked at Daryl, sat beside her, head in his hands. "That's why it got this bad. Found it under the gas pedal. I killed him." She told them plainly. Truth was, killing him was easier than she thought. There was no other way. "Daryl took care of the other one. He tried to give Merle another option...but..." She tailed off.

Daryl sat up. "I shot him. I left him a car but I took his gun. If he ain't bled out or Walkers ain't bit him then maybe he'd make it. I don't care." He stood up, shrugging off his jacket. "Can you fix her up or what?" He gestured for Hershel to get moving. The bravado returned, the mask was back on.

"Maggie, would you get my bag from the truck please?" Carol asked the girl, who was standing in the doorway, clutching her sister's hand. No doubt the fact that it could be Beth sitting at the table instead of Carol weighed on her mind. She nodded and did as was asked.

Nobody seemed to be able to say anything, do anything. They just gaped at her as if she was a sideshow. "Lori, there any dry clothes about?"

Lori jumped at the words spoken in her direction. "I'll find something. Carl, come help." She lead her son out of the room and this seemed to mobilise everyone else. Hershel went hunting for his meagre amount of medical supplies whilst Glenn and T-Dog left the room, presumably going to keep watch.

He watched her nervously from across the kitchen as Hershel inspected her head injury. Biting his nails, strumming his hand across the counter top, he watched as she winced as the old man cleaned the wound, debating out loud about whether attempting stitches would be necessary. He wanted to snatch the damp cloth from him and do it himself but he knew that despite his frustration, the best man was doing the job. Eventually, Hershel moved onto her lip and once the blood was removed from her face, he found she was less painful to look at.

He had failed her. He left the truck to protect her and he failed. She was forced to kill another human being to protect herself and Beth. He thought that was perhaps worse than the injuries she had inflicted on her. He then realised that tonight was the first time he had killed another man too. Walkers, sure, he couldn't even begin to count how many of them he had killed. But never another member of the living. There was no guilt for that. It was fight or die. Merle was probably dead. He didn't regret it. That wasn't his brother anymore. His family was sitting in this kitchen.

Eventually Lori returned, bearing a clean shirt and jeans that were ripped and torn, clearly looking like they had seen better days. "They're from upstairs. I think they'll be a little big, but that's all there is until tomorrow." Carol nodded her thanks.

"Will anyone mind if I take the bowl to wash up a little?" She asked as Hershel finished with her face.

"I'll fix you up a hot bowl, give you a hand if you want." Lori offered. "I think there's a box of painkillers somewhere too. We've got plenty of beds upstairs and I'm sure everyone will agree that we need to stay put for a couple of days, give you a little time to rest up." Lori shot Rick a look that Daryl didn't miss, one that suggested that what she said would happen, whether Rick liked it or not. Lori took the bowl away, fussing to get the water hot again, before leaving the room with the clothes, setting up a room for Carol, she assumed.

"Carol, before you do anything, I'd like to check your ribs, make sure you've got nothing broken." Hershel said, taking a seat the other side of her. "I can see some nasty bruising is going to pop up. Need to see if we need to bind you up."

Carol looked down, drawing her shirt closer together. "No. It's fine. Honestly. I've cracked ribs before, I know what to look for. I'll call you if I need anything. Thank you." Her voice was small, quiet. Daryl had to grip the table in anger. He knew how she'd sustained broken ribs in the past and it made him wish Ed Peletier was alive just so he could kill him again.

She picked up the bag that Maggie had left for her on the table, movements slow and awkward as she navigated her way through the unfamiliar house, seeking out the stairs. She could feel him following her, just a step behind. She gave him a backwards glance, but she didn't say anything. She knew he wanted to get away from them, avoid answering more questions.

She hissed as she took the first step, pain rushing through her whole body. Daryl caught her by the elbow. "Let me carry you." He muttered. She didn't protest as he slipped an arm behind her knees and she put her arms around his neck before he pulled her legs from under her, his other arm gripping her back.

Lori was fussing in a room that was opposite the top of the winding stairs, pulling the duvet back and plumping pillows. Daryl set her down gently on the bed and Lori bent down to pull Carol's shoes off her feet.

"I'm okay Lori, honestly. I'll call if I need anything." She touched her hand to the other woman's shoulder, letting her know it wasn't a personal slight.

"You sure, honey? I mean, you can't even get up the stairs."

"I'll do it." Daryl muttered from his position in the door way. Carol looked up at him, a little surprised. But she nodded quickly to Lori, agreeing. She couldn't stand the fussing right now and if she knew anything about Daryl Dixon, it was that he couldn't stand fussing either.

"Alright." Lori responded, pulling herself from the floor. "Call me if you need me, we're in the bedroom next door." The door closed with a soft click.

Daryl kneeled in front of her, taking the spot Lori had just vacated and started unlacing her sneakers.

"I can do it." She protested, pulling her foot away, but he held her ankle firmly.

"I got it." He told her, pulling the offending items off. It was like he was undressing a china doll. He worked with a featherlight touch, peeling her socks from her feet and then her coat, one arm at a time so he didn't pull any of her tender muscles. He didn't say anything to her as he rubbed the cloth over her hands, washing away at the sticky red marks. He inspected both sides of her hands for cuts or grazes and when she caught sight of the dirt under her nails, she wanted to heave. It was skin and blood, that man's. Daryl looked up at her on hearing her gasp and she was infinitely grateful when he pushed his own nail under each of hers, removing every last trace of Andrew, without her having to tell him why she looked so horrified.

Eventually, she knew she was going to have to let him check her ribs. She wasn't entirely certain that she hadn't broken any, despite what she said to Hershel. She released her shirt, shrugging it off one shoulder.

Daryl froze from his position in front of her. "It's fine." She muttered to him, giving him a small smile. "Really. There's nothing to hide anymore, is there?" And there wasn't, was there? He had seen her naked before, or pretty close to it. He had seen her at her worst. He had seen her at her best. Tonight, when she put that gun to Andrew's forehead and took charge of what happened to her, that was her best. There was nothing Daryl shouldn't see anymore.

He nodded, helping her ease the shirt from her other shoulder. He ran the cloth over her neck and shoulders, taking care over the front of the neck, where his hand print had marked her skin, leaving angry red welts. Carol flexed an arm behind her back experimentally, flinching as it pulled at her stomach muscles.

"Don't." He chasitised her, pushing her arm back down.

"I need to take my bra off." She told him. Her breast ached where Andrew had pulled at her skin, the material was rubbing against it now and she wasn't even embarrassed to ask him to help her with this. Anything to dull the soreness.

He let out a sigh, his breath touching her shoulder, before he leant behind her to fiddle with the clasp. He fumbled with the clip and she stifled a chuckle. Only a moment ago, his touch had been so light she could barely feel it and now he was clumsy, fingers pulling at the elastic like a teenage boy. Eventually, the clip came free and she pressed her hands to her chest to catch the material as it sprung forward.

He washed her back, although it ached, she felt certain that there would be no blood there. Still, it had been a few days since they had last had a proper wash and it would be nice to feel clean.

He cleared his throat, returning the cloth to the water bowl. "I need to check your ribs."

She nodded. "How do you want me?" She blushed at how the words sounded and she thought she saw colour in his cheeks too, although it was hard to tell in the early morning light that poured through the window.

"Lie down."

She did as he asked, still clutching the bra to her chest, forcing her breathing to return to normal. It hurt to have her stomach flutter like this. He picked up her feet, resting them on the bed and sat beside her.

"It's gonna hurt a little." He warned her. She nodded and closed her eyes. He started at the bottom of her rib cage, fingers pressing along each bone, from each side into the middle before moving onto the next one.

Daryl felt a little bit sick when he saw how skinny she'd gotten. He'd seen her only a few days before, but it was a fleeting look and he was more focused on the artwork on her side than spotting how her ribs jutted out of her skin. Her hip bones were all angles, as if they would break if she bumped something. It was probably her skinniness that caused her such pain when she took the injuries to her stomach and chest. He would work harder to ensure she got a better meal. He owed her that at least.

She flinched as he worked his way upwards, where her skin was already beginning to discolour and he tried to ease up the pressure as much as he could. His fingers lingered over her tattoo and he realised that it wasn't one flower, but several. Cherry blossom flowers. Her head twisted down to look at him when she realised his fingers had stopped moving.

"I was drunk." She told him, a smile in her voice. "I wish I could say there was something deep and meaningful to it. It was the last day of college and I was blind drunk."

"I figured." He let himself smile as his fingers continued skimming her stomach. "Did ya enjoy college?"

"Every minute." She told him.

"Then there's ya meanin'." He stopped his movement as he came to the top of her stomach, right under her chest. She felt his hands brush against hers and she let the bra fall away, hands going to her sides.

"Huh. I guess you're right." She felt him take a deep breath as he worked over her chest, but she kept her gaze averted, sparing him his blushes. Not hers. _Nothing to hide_, she reminded herself.

She was beautiful, he decided as he ran the cooling cloth over her front. Even though she was so thin he was positive she could snap and she was covered in cuts and bruises, he was pretty sure that she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He felt her chest rise and fall underneath his palm and he had to fight back the urge to kiss her. He scolded himself for even thinking such a thing when she had just been inches from being raped.

"Done." He told her, finally. "I don't think anythin's broken." He took her arm to help her up, taking the clean shirt from the bottom of the bed to put on her. He could feel her eyes watching him as he threaded her arms into the sleeves, taking his time to do up the buttons without fumbling. As he reached the top, he felt her breath on his forehead, he lifted his head up to look at her and without warning, she pressed her mouth to his.

It took him a second to register what she was doing and as she put a hand to his head, fingers winding through his hair, he finally managed to respond, pushing his tongue into her open mouth. There was an urgency in her pace, she kissed him as though he would be ripped from her at any moment and he responded in kind, hands resting on her hips, bringing her closer to him, sliding under her shirt. Her grip on his hair was almost painful.

Suddenly, she pulled her mouth from his, pain on her features and his hands withdrew from her immediately.

"Sorry." He muttered, pulling away from her. He had pushed her too far.

"No." She murmured, pulling him back. "It's just my lip..." She touched a hand to her mouth and he could see the cut had split again.

"Shit." He mumbled, reaching over her for the cloth to dab at her lip but she pulled his hand back to her, resting it back on her hip.

"It's okay." She told him in a whisper. She pressed her fingers to his lips and he grasped her hand to kiss them. "Stay with me?" She asked.

He nodded, pulling back the quilt to allow her to slip in. She fumbled at her waistband, unbuttoning her jeans and he knelt down to help her pull them from her ankles before slipping off his own boots. He pushed her clothes from the bed as she settled herself into the mattress, trying to find a position that would be comfortable. He slid in next to her, inches apart, frightened to touch her in case he hurt her.

Carol reached over for his hand, clasping it with both her own, resting it against her breast plate. He turned on his side to face her, watching her as she stroked his fingers.

"I'm sorry I didn't stop this happenin' to you." He told her softly, his other hand brushing her cheek.

She turned to look at him sharply. "Don't you ever be sorry for this. If it wasn't for you, I would't even be here." Her voice was fierce. "Don't you ever say that to me again."

Daryl just swallowed and looked at her, before giving the smallest of nods. He pushed himself as close as he dared, his legs touching hers.

"You're my family too." She told him, closing her eyes.

His heart skipped a beat as he closed his own.


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Note: Thank you for the reads/reviews and the tumblr'ing. Tumblr is becoming an addiction. Find me under SepticLovebite.

TWDTWDTWD

Daryl woke up when the sun streamed through the window, blinding him. It felt odd, to wake up in the middle of the day, although he figured it wasn't even lunch time, he never slept for too long. He heard Carol's gentle breathing beside him and he realised where he was. She had the blankets tangled up around her waist, the over sized shirt she wore had ridden up, exposing her stomach a little and he winced to see the purple marks peppering her skin. She still clutched his hand, even in her sleep, resting both their arms over her hips.

He watched her a few minutes but he could hear voices through out the house and he didn't want to have the conversation Rick would want to have in front of her. She had seen and heard enough. He gently pulled his hand free, drawing the blankets up a little higher around her, she didn't stir as he pulled on his boots and heading for the stairs, leaving the bedroom door ajar.

He could hear low voices in the back of the house but he opened every door he came across, trying to familiarise himself with the place quickly. He always was one of the first in an empty building and it was unnerving to not be able to find his way out without even thinking about it. The sitting room was large and airy, blankets were bunched up on the sofa, suggesting two people had spent the night there. There was a dining room, that was empty of people, although some of their supplies were stacked on the table. A study, again empty. He reached the kitchen, where Rick, Glenn and Carl were at the table, open tins in front of them.

"Hey." Glenn greeted, with a nod of his head.

"What time is it?" He asked, pulling out a chair and slumping in it.

"Little after noon." Rick answered, plucking a slice of peach from his tin. "How is she this morning?"

"Still asleep. Nothin' broken, but I figure it's gonna hurt like a bitch today. Skin's black already."

Glenn winced into his tin of sweetcorn, choking a little. "That sucks. I'll see if I can get further in to that town down the road, get some medical supplies. Muscle stuff? We could do with a scout around anyway, see how long we can stay here." He looked at Rick for confirmation and the sheriff nodded. "I'll get Maggie to come with." He shovelled the last of his sweetcorn into his mouth before leaving to get his girlfriend. Daryl nodded his thanks as the younger man passed by.

"You want to stay here?" He asked.

"Just until Carol is feeling up to it. A week or so, more if we have to. Is it just a few cuts and bruises? I mean to say...Beth still isn't making a lot of sense, did he put his hands on her...in other ways?" Rick spared his son a glance, but the boy was clearly too young to understand the meaning behind his words as he continued to eat his food.

Daryl shook his head. He wasn't a 100% sure, but she didn't say anything to him. One of her breasts was scratched, marks that looked like a handprint on the skin, but her legs were untouched, jeans were intact. It didn't make the situation any better though. He sat up to look out the kitchen window, survey the land around them. There was some forestry, what looked liked a river just over the fence. He wondered if he could get some hunting in before dark.

"How didja shake your lot off?" He asked.

"There were two cars on us. Managed to run one off the road long enough to get away. There were four men in each. Maggie got a lucky shot and took the front tyre of the other one out from her sun roof. They crashed the car, we just fired at them before they could get back on the road and got the hell out of there. Just luck, I guess." Rick explained, pushing a bottle of water towards Daryl. He took a breath, twisting his fork in his hand. "I'm sorry that you had to do that to Merle."

Daryl shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He wasn't sorry for leaving Merle behind. He wished he'd aimed his bullet to his head. Because even though Merle would've killed him, leaving him as Walker food was worse than killing him. Maybe someone would find him. One of the others from cars that chased Rick and the others. Maybe he'd save himself. He did get out of Atlanta after cutting off his own hand, after all. He hoped that Merle never found them if he was alive.

"It had to be done." He answered finally. "He woulda thrown the women to the wolves. He said as much, more'n once. He went t'pull his gun on me. I'd do it again." He turned away, ending the conversation. "But, we need to push on as soon as we can. If there's more of 'em an' they come lookin'...they'll be no more opportunities to join, for any of us."

Rick nodded. "We'll let Glenn make this run into the town up the road. We could do with more food, ammo too, if we can get it. Medical supplies. Some stronger medication for Carol if we can get it."

"I'll go out huntin'. Get what I can."

"You should stay. For Carol." Rick finished his can, pushing it aside.

Daryl shook his head. "She needs proper food. She's...she's so thin, she looks like she's gonna snap."

"Who's gonna snap?" Lori appeared from behind the door, empty plate in hand.

Daryl stood up from the table, ready to leave. It was one thing to talk to Rick about such matters, but not Lori Grimes. He always tried to keep conversations with her brief.

"Carol. Make sure she eats properly while I'm out." He mumbled at her, brushing past her to go upstairs. Glenn passed him on the way up, Maggie in tow and he gave them a nod as they bounded down the steps.

"Glenn, there's a spare handgun in the truck. Might need cleanin' though." He told the boy, it was an afterthought. Glenn nodded. The gun was tipped in blood, Andrew's blood and he would be glad for someone else to deal with it.

TWDTWDTWD

When Carol woke, it was with a start. It was a nightmare, but she couldn't recall what happened. But with the jolt of alertness, came the pain. There was no pain like what she felt over her stomach. A deep, throbbing ache that made her feel sick. And she was thirsty. Her mouth felt as dry as the desert. She licked her parched lips and winced at the size of her bottom lip. The cut spread out past her lipline but she was relieved to see no blood came away when she pressed her fingers to her lips.

It seemed to take an age to shimmy herself across the bed to the edge and upon spotting Daryl's coat thrown onto a chair in the corner, she remembered the previous night's events. He had washed the blood from her. Changed her clothes. She had kissed him. He had kissed her back. But he wasn't here now.

Before she could linger on that thought, she felt another twinge in her stomach and she stood up to inspect the damage in the mirror mounted to the wardrobe. She looked a fright. Dark circles under her eyes, a fat lip and a deep purple handprint across her throat were the first thing she saw and she unbuttoned her shirt to see the damage on her middle. Her stomach was almost entirely a purple-yellow hue, deeper in places where blood vessels had burst. One of her breasts had his handprint and she wondered if she'd even be able to get her bra on again that day.

She looked repulsive. Even worse than she looked after Ed had taken his fury out on her. She hadn't cried at all the day before, but now in the aftermath, she wanted to break down and sob. She began buttoning up the shirt again when the door creaked open, Daryl standing in the threshold.

"You ok?" He asked, fiddling with a bottle of water. She looked at him with watery eyes and bit back the cry that wanted to break free, nodding her response. "You wanna go downstairs?"

She nodded again, searching the room for her jeans and she spotted them next to his jacket, marked with blood. The tears welled up again. He brushed past her, touching her shoulder lightly and reaching for a pair that sat on the edge of the bed. She remembered then. Lori had brought them. She made to take them from him but he pulled them away.

"Let me do it." He murmured to her. She sat herself gingerly on the edge of the bed and he lifted her legs one at a time to pull through the jeans, offering his hand to pull her up. He was nose to nose with her now, watching her intently as she took the waistband from him to button and pull up the fly. They were far too big, she would need to hold onto them as she walked.

"Clothes'll be dry in a bit." He put a hand to her cheek, brushing the tear that escaped from her, before it could roll down her face. She nodded again, because it seemed that's all she could do. Words did not want to leave her lips. He brushed his mouth against her cheek, she could feel his beard scratching her gently and he pressed a chaste kiss to her skin, lingering for just a second. "'S gonna be okay. I promise."

Carol grasped at his fingers on her face, squeezing them tight. "I know." She whispered.

"I have to hunt." He pulled away from her reluctantly to put his jacket on. "I won't be long." He returned to her, gesturing for her to put her arms round his neck, for him to lift her up.

As he gently deposited her on the sitting room couch, he brushed her cheek once more, just as Carl came tumbling into the room, dragging Beth by the hand, clutching a pack of cards. "Hey Carol, Beth doesn't know how to play rummy, we totally have to show her." He didn't seem at all perturbed by her swollen face, plunking himself down on the floor beside her feet, pulling Beth down with him. The girl didn't say anything, just shrugging when Carol greeted her.

Daryl just nodded his goodbye and she waited until she heard the front door slam before she turned her attention back onto Beth and Carl.

TWDTWDTWD

Glenn and Maggie reappeared first, all smiles and laughs. It seemed their trip was a success and they entered the house laden with bags, a hodge podge of food, medicine and even a couple of boxes of bullets. Glenn presented her with a small plastic bag as if it were a bouquet of flowers. It contained cocodemol, salve for her cuts and several packs that instantly heated up that she would savour for bed time.

She truly perked up however, when Daryl returned, just before dusk and she heard Lori chuckle with joy, so she knew his trip out had been fairly successful. He didn't come in immediately, she assumed he was cleaning their dinner, seeing as it was usually him or her that did it.

When he opened the door to living room, the smell of cooking meat filled the air, making her mouth water. She was finally alone, someone had been with her every minute of the whole afternoon and it had worn her out. Carol suspected she would be in bed as soon as she ate, even though it hadn't been long since she woke up.

He sat beside her silently until Lori came in bearing plates of meat and pasta, handing her an overloaded plate. She tried to protest but Lori shushed her with a wave of her hand before darting out the door. Daryl seemed to watch her with every bite she took but it wasn't as difficult as she thought it would be to eat. Still, she couldn't finish it all, despite his disapproving look.

Others started trickling in after dinner and she found herself slumping against Daryl's shoulder, drifting in and out of sleep. She thought it had been only a minute or two but after the third or fourth time of coming too, she was in total darkness, lying flat on her back. She could hear Daryl breathing steadily next to her, pressed right up against her side, his ankle hooked over hers and he clutched her hand to his chest.

It felt that at that minute, everything _would_ be okay.


	9. Chapter 9

Author's Note: I want to be best friends with everyone of you. Apologies for the delay in this chapter, life blah blah blah. I'm away again this weekend so I will update sometime Monday. Thank you.

TWDTWDTWD

It took four days for them to move on, mostly at Carol's insistence. It took four days for the bruising of her muscles to recede somewhat, allowing her to walk almost normally. Her lip was back to normal size, the cut healing nicely, so she could eat and drink as usual. Kiss as normal. Not that Daryl came close to kissing her again.

She'd tried to kiss him. Well, she succeeded. On the second night, he climbed into the bed with her and she pressed herself as close to him as she could and he didn't object. His face was so close to her own that it was easy to press her lips to his. It took him a moment to respond, he was always so uncertain around her, before he opened his mouth to accept her tongue, pressing his hands to her face. Even though she had instigated it, he took the lead, pressing her back against the mattress as she tugged on the hem of his shirt, trying to have as much of him touching her as possible. One of his hands slipped under her shirt, gripping on her hip as she arched beneath him, pressing herself into him.

She felt him go hard against her leg and he pushed her thighs apart with his knee, his thigh brushing her crotch and she moaned into his mouth, wordlessly urging him on. He pressed harder against her mouth, silencing her and slid his hands up across her bruised middle. She tried to hide her flinch, to stop the groan that was not in ecstasy from slipping from her lips but he caught it and swiftly pulled away from her as if she had burnt him.

"No, it's okay." She whispered to him, hands scrabbling to pull him back over her but he refused, prising her fingers from his shirt front. "It's fine."

"No." He grunted at her, rolling back onto the bed. "'s not okay. I don't wanna hurt you."

"You won't." Carol propped herself up as best as she could, trying not to show him how much she hurt. She reached out for him but he jerked away, pushing himself to the edge of the bed. Carol pulled back her hand, feelings hurt. "Daryl."

He just looked at her, shaking his head.

She let out a sigh of frustration and tugged down her flannel shirt. She wanted to roll over and turn her back on him, to physically voice her displeasure, but it hurt her too much so she had to make do with pulling the blankets up to her neck and turning her head away.

When she woke up the next morning, he was back by her side, feet bumping hers, a hand resting on her thigh. She relished the contact for a little while. It had been so long since there had been physical affection from a man in her life. The spell was broken when he woke up a little after she did, pulling himself away from her the minute his eyes fluttered open. He was careful to keep all touching to a minimum then. Doing whatever he needed to help her wash or dress, but no more. But he was always there, hovering in the peripherals of her vision.

He was the main reason she wanted to move on. They needed purpose, a distraction. Daryl never said a word to her about his desire to move further north into Alabama, she knew he would never dream of rushing her recovery but she could feel it. He helped Rick and Hershel plan out the route everyday, went hunting every morning and rooted around the local town at every opportunity.

Daryl worried that members of Merle's group, or even Merle himself, would find them. They weren't far over the Alabama-Georgia border and there weren't many people living. He just itched to get as far north as possible. He wanted to keep them safe. He wanted to keep Carol safe. It made him feel sick that he hurt her.

Getting caught up in the heat of the moment could've made her a hell of a lot worse and she wouldn't have even told him. Her face gave the game away. She would've let him to do it and that made him feel awful. Sure, he wanted her. He really wanted her. This thing, whatever it was that was between them, it had been brewing a long time. He didn't know how to pursue it and neither did she. They had seemed to dance around each other, never talking about it. Not that he ever would anyway. Talking about shit was useless. Doing was better. And he would do something to show her, when she was well again.

He wouldn't even let himself touch her, if he could help it. It wasn't like he wasn't going to help her when she needed it, like putting on her shoes or tending to her wounds, but he wouldn't let himself kiss her or put his hands on her in any kind of intimate way because he wanted more. He wanted to fuck her. She would let out these little breathy moans when he even pressed against her and he couldn't trust himself to hold back.

So when she proclaimed herself well enough to get back on the road, he didn't protest. At least if they were on the road, he wouldn't be sitting around, watching her watch him. He wouldn't be thinking about all the things he wanted to do with her. And then maybe she'd quit pouting. He'd never seen Carol behave so petulantly before. Like a child that couldn't have their way, she folded her arms and turned her back to him. To the others, she treated him no differently but when they were on her own, she tried to ignore him. She _knew _why he didn't want to touch her.

It wasn't til they rode out a few days after they arrived, that he realised what leaving would mean. It would mean endless hours alone in the cab of the truck, with nothing or no-one to distract them, they would only have each other for company. She didn't even give him breathing space, even in that ever-shrinking cab. She sat in the middle, leaving space between her and the door and he wanted to shove her over, but considered it counterproductive to both his plan of not touching her unless necessary and of not hurting her.

He almost considered breaking his resolve when they stopped on a blocked road and she put her hand on his thigh to brace herself as she peered over him to look out the window. Almost.

The first two days, they managed to find somewhere to bed down for the night, but by the time they got into Mississippi, they were were out on the open highway, where the roads were clear, no Walkers seemingly about, but it was just as dangerous to stop there, with no cover or opportunities to gather supplies. Noone wanted to stop here for anything more than refuelling, so it fell upon Carol to take up some of the driving. Not that Daryl wanted her to, of course. He had suggested to her before they even pulled over to swap with T-Dog, but she turned to him with a withering look, pouring water on that idea.

"I'm not crippled. It's not going to hurt me to sit behind the wheel." Her voice was full of scorn.

"It ain't that, if -" He tried to protest but she cut him dead as he pulled the truck over behind Rick's car.

"If I see something, I will wake you up. Now move over." She pushed him none too gently into the door and he could do nothing but gape at her. Carol _never_ spoke back to anyone. Never ignored instructions or took charge. But there was no other word for it, Carol had become increasingly cheeky since the incident with Andrew. Definitely not on par with anything Lori or Maggie could offer, but for her, it was positively rude. He kind of liked it.

It took a little while for her to get into the swing of driving the truck and he tried not to wince when she crunched the gears, but eventually he managed to drift off. When he woke up, it was dark and it alarmed him momentarily. Carol was relaxed on the bench, one arm on the wheel, the other resting on the door, eyes fixed on the road ahead. The moon was out and he could see she was tired.

"What time is it?" He asked groggily, stretching his back and rubbing his eyes.

Her eyes drifted to the dash to look for the clock. "A little after midnight."

"You shoulda woke me up." He told her, shaking off the ache in his limbs from sitting up against the door.

"I'm fine." She told him, but he could see her jaw clench to stifle a yawn.

"Come on, switch wit' me." He shuffled closer to her and she was startled when she realised he wanted to switch places without stopping the car.

"There's only forty five minutes till we pull over to refuel anyway."

He just tapped her elbow, wedging a leg under hers. She was forced to lift her hips and he put his hands to her waist to pull her up higher, sliding himself underneath her so that she straddled his leg. It made her chuckle inwardly when she realised after all his attempts to avoid contact, he'd just undone his efforts in the space of a few seconds. He pushed her foot from the gas pedal and she reluctantly slid from his lap, letting him take over the steering wheel.

"Get some rest." He ordered her, eyes flickering between the road and her. She let out a sigh and pulled the folded blanket from the space behind them, wrapping it around herself. She settled herself against the door but by the time she felt like she could just about drift off, the truck slowed to a stop and her eyes snapped open when she felt the rush of cold from Daryl opening his door. She'd considered hopping out to stretch herself, her muscles still had a tendency to cramp up if she sat in the same position for too long, but the cold was off putting so she settled for stretching herself across the bench, head at the driver's side, bare feet pressed up against the glass of the passenger window.

She didn't think she'd fallen asleep, but she had, if only for a few minutes and she jerked awake when Daryl pulled the door open again. She made to get up but he stopped her as she lifted her head, wordlessly allowing her to rest her head on his thigh. She let out a small sigh, finding her comfortable position on the bench and closed her eyes as the engine roared to life.

He didn't really intend on letting her rest against his leg. It's just she'd looked peaceful sleeping on the bench and he knew damn well how uncomfortable it was to sleep against the door and he could only imagine how difficult it would be when she had bruising like she did. When she let out that little sigh of contentment, he had to grip the steering wheel tighter to stop himself reaching out for her. He didn't need to put both hands on the wheel, they were cruising along at 50 mph, with very little turns or bends in the road ahead, but it kept his right hand away from her, when it wanted to rest right on her skin.

He tried to force his mind to other things, the possibilities that lay ahead of them, even tried focusing on what he fancied for his next meal but it was useless. Every so often she let out a little breathy moan and he glanced down at his lap to watch her. She let out a faint little gasp and her eyes snapped open.

"You a'right?" He grunted at her.

She nodded. "Nightmare." She whispered.

He pulled his hand from the wheel and brushed her jaw. "S'ok." He told her. The motion was involuntary but she pressed her hand over his, thumb rubbing against his fingers.

"I know." She replied, moving the pads of his fingers to her pursed lips , kissing them gently. Daryl let out a sigh. Resigned, Carol thought. Like he had given in to her. She felt ridiculously pleased with herself.

"Ya gonna be the death of me ya know." He told her. She let out a soft laugh and pulled his arm down to rest over her chest. He froze at her action, arm stiffening but she was relentless, clasping her fingers over his and he relaxed as his fingertips grazed the bare skin just inside her shirt, the swell of her breast under his palm.

Carol was sick of the games they seemed to be playing. Dancing around each other, never getting anywhere. This was her clear cut signal that she wanted more from him. Needed more. She didn't want to wait any longer. As soon as they could, she _would_.

As if he could read her mind, his hand trailed further into her shirt, palm cupping her breast, her nipple peaking under his caress. "Soon." He murmured. Daryl was tired of fighting her on this. Fighting his own baser desires. Life was too short.

She drifted off pretty quickly and he let himself smirk at the fact. His hand stayed where she had put it, her own resting on top and he found himself desperately wishing that the empty, deserted highway in the state of Mississippi was their destination so he could do exactly what he really wanted to do. What he really wanted to do was push those over sized jeans from her hips and pull her into his lap. Still, he contented himself with his hand in her shirt, thumb tracing patterns over her hardened nipple. _Soon_.


	10. Chapter 10

Author's Note: Thank you for the kind reads and reviews. For those who are interested, I have now signed up to Twitter, find me under SepticLovebite. Same for my Tumblr. Feel free to spam the shit out of me. ;)

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Soon wasn't as soon as either of them would've liked. There was another three days spent on the road, where they all slept together in one room. By the time they finally made it over the border into Missouri, Daryl was virtually sitting on his hands to keep from Carol. She was a fucking temptress out to destroy him. Now that she had defeated his willpower, she backed off entirely, resisting all contact until he just managed to regain his composure and then undoing him with a single touch. She was playing games with him unashamedly, just giving him a quirk of her lips when he called her out on it.

Carol surprised herself with her behaviour towards Daryl. Dare she say it, she was flirting. Nothing obvious of course and at first, it wasn't even intentional. Just a brush of her fingers against his and he snatched her hand up, pushing himself against her, almost snarling at her before pressing his mouth on hers. Before he could even push his tongue into her mouth, they were forced to jump apart when Rick called Daryl from around the corner. Well, now she knew how he could react, she had turned it into a game.

It was a good feeling, to be wanted. To be found desirable. Ed never made her feel attractive, not after she got that wedding band on her finger. It crossed her mind that perhaps it was just a case he needed _someone_, just a body. But she didn't let herself dwell on the thought. If that's all he wanted from her, then that's all he would be to her. If. Still, the last few days had left her feeling the best she had felt for a long time. Long before Walkers roamed the planet even. She hadn't had a thought about dying. She was beginning to find her appetite and engage with the rest of the group. When she thought of Sophia, she only thought of the good times, the memories she would treasure for the rest of her life. She wasn't naive enough to think that she was simply fine again, but it felt like good progress.

Finally, they opted to rest up for a few days in the northern part of Missouri, Lori's morning sickness was causing them to stop every other mile anyway and there was always time to find more supplies. Daryl had tried to steer Rick into the direction of a larger house, where there would be some privacy for them all, but their leader's urgency in finding a bolt hole for his ailing wife meant they had to settle for a four bed house about five miles from the nearest town.

It was raining as they scouted the building, clearing out the straggling Walkers and disposing of their bodies. By the time the vehicles were unloaded, everyone's bags handed out, they were all soaked to the skin, shivering from the rain that had turned increasingly cold as they headed further north. Carol had commandeered the study to change out of her wet things. Much to her pleasure, she discovered the sofa pulled out into a bed, giving them a little bit of extra space. Privacy for her and Daryl, if they could.

She stripped off her sopping clothes, tossing them into the corner of the room, before rifling through the holdall for her some clean clothes. There was little of her own left so she snatched a shirt that had previously been scavenged for Daryl, a dark grey number that still had the sleeves on, thankfully. She was buttoning it up when there was a soft knock on the door and Daryl came in, closing the door behind him with a click.

She gave him a soft smile, turning her attention back to the bag to find a pair of pants, she heard him drop his crossbow down to the floor and peel his wet jacket off. She could feel him creeping up behind.

"Who the hell said you could wear _my_ clothes?" He muttered to her, tugging the hem of the shirt that grazed her thighs. She stood up straight and turned her head over her shoulder.

"I figured you wouldn't mind." She told him as he pressed himself behind her, his hand coming to the front of the button down.

"You figured wrong." Daryl slid his hand under the shirt, hand brushing her thighs, sliding to rest on her stomach, fingertips just touching the top of her panties. Carol let out a breathy moan and he settled his head on her shoulder, mouth grazing her cheek.

"I'm sorry." She managed to choke out, as his fingers slid under the elastic of her panties, trailing downwards. She let out a gasp as his fingers reached their intended destination. She was wet, slippery under the fingers that moved up and down her entrance and it pleased him to know that he caused that before he even touched her. He could feel her legs shaking and he wrapped his free arm around the front of her, gripping her shoulder tight as she panted against his mouth, lips blindly seeking his. He pushed his finger into her slowly and he kissed the cry from her lips as he eased the digit in and out.

Carol was completely taken aback at the way he invaded her willing body. She was embarrassed at the way her body reacted to his appearance before he even touched her and she couldn't contain the pants and moans that passed her lips as he worked his fingers in and over her. It amused him, she could tell, the way she reacted, he smirked against her mouth, tongue lashing against hers. He pushed his thumb against her clit and she grasped the busy hand by the wrist, gasping as a wave of pleasure pushed through her. She pinched at the skin, whether she was trying to stop him or urge him on, neither of them could tell, but he didn't let up.

She could feel the heat pooling in her stomach as he continued in this fashion for several minutes, alternating between entering her with two fingers and lightly pinching on her sensitive clit. She had never felt this turned on, never been stimulated like this and it took all her strength to keep her moans quiet. He didn't say a word to her and when she had to pull her lips away from his, locking her mouth over his arm that was just under her chin, teeth biting into the flesh, he just hissed and pushed his mouth of the side of her jaw, licking and sucking at the soft skin there.

He could feel her going tense under his hands, legs trembling as she approached orgasm, it made him hard against her thigh and he increased his pace with his fingers, using the base of his hand on her clit. She grew wetter and wetter and he felt her suddenly go stiff, breathing in sharply as she came on his hand.

They stood still for a moment, letting her come down from her high. He didn't take his fingers from out of her, feeling the nerve endings throbbing against his hand. She finally released her mouth from his forearm, she could taste a little blood on her tongue and she brought her hand around his neck, dragging his mouth to hers, kissing him deep, a wordless thank you for the pleasure he had just given her.

Daryl was tempted to throw her onto the sofa and take her there and then, his dick was so hard it was almost painful but he intended on punishing her for her teasing so he moved his fingers inside her again, determined to make her cum until she couldn't take anymore. She squirmed as he brushed against her still sensitive clit, pulling from their kiss to protest.

"You're a fuckin' cocktease." He snarled at her, the sound vibrating against her jaw. He pulled his arm away from her shoulder, jerking her shirt up higher so he could cup her breast, pinching her nipple between his thumb and forefinger.

"I'm sorry..." She huffed out. "I can't take...too soon for more..." She protested faintly, but she didn't release her hold on his wrist, if anything she was guiding his fingers deeper into her and he teased her by pressing a third digit against her entrance. "More..." She finally whispered and just as he made to push his third finger into her, there was a sharp rap on the door.

They both jumped at the sound and it was Rick, asking for Daryl's help with something or another. He withdrew his fingers from her panties and Carol let out a moan of disappointment and the hand went to her waist to steady her.

"Yeah, be there in a minute!" Daryl called out, cursing under his breath. Carol squirmed uncomfortably, still incredibly turned on and left hanging mid-way to a second orgasm. "Serves you right for bein' such a tease." He murmured against her cheek, turning her around to face him. She was red faced, hot to the touch and there was a light sheen of sweat across her brow.

"You can't leave me, like this..." She panted, clinging to his damp shirt. He let out a low chuckle and brought his finger to his lips, sucking her taste from it. She gasped at the action, having never had anyone do that before.

"'S ya own fault." He told her, pulling away. She whimpered and he nudged back against the sofa, not trusting her to not topple over in her worked-up state. "And don't even think 'bout finishin' up while I'm gone." With that, he disappeared, leaving her a quivering wreck on the sofa.

TWDTWDTWD

She gave herself ten minutes to calm down, finding a dry pair of panties and pants that didn't require holding to stay up. She left his shirt on, pulling a cardigan over it. She checked herself in her hand mirror and to her, it was plainly obvious what had just happened. The sweat had cooled off but her cheeks were still a little pink and her guilty expression gave the game away. Nevertheless, she yanked the door open to help the other women with the preparation of their evening meal.

No-one said anything to her, although she was sure Lori kept sneaking curious glances at her, but it could have been paranoia causing her to think things that weren't happening. The men came into the kitchen talking about things she had no desire to pay attention to and she tried to avoid looking at him, lest her face completely give away the game.

He overly chatty at the dinner table, engaging in conversations that he usual avoided like the plague. She even caught him smiling once or twice and she wondered whether he was genuinely in a good mood or whether it was like it was for her, a way of distracting himself.

She took over the washing up, rushing to get it done quickly. Everyone seemed to be in the same frame of mind, it had been several days since they slept in beds and all were looking forward to mattresses and duvets. Mostly everyone was sleeping upstairs, the only exception was T-Dog, who was using the blow up mattress in the sitting room, thankfully across the house from the study.

She was first in the sofa bed and she had stripped down to just his shirt, her panties tossed into the corner with her other things. She was determined to get the second orgasm he had worked her towards and give him one of his own. A few minutes later he followed her in, but now his facial expression was grim.

"What's wrong?" She asked, sitting up.

He toed his boots off, stripping off his layers.

"I'm going into that town first thing tomorrow." He told her, undressing to his underwear before sliding under the covers with her.

"Why?" She was confused, he didn't seem all that worried but his tone was miserable.

"No fuckin' rubbers, is there?" He sighed, thumping his pillow into shape.

Carol's heart sunk. She hadn't even thought of that, but it would be completely necessary. Although she was forty now, there was still every chance she could fall pregnant and that would be the worst thing that could happen to them. She settled back down into the bed and shuffled closer to him, he let her curl over his chest. She wanted to give him what he had given her, total bliss, but foreplay was not her strong point. Giving Ed a blow job was more like getting choked, he didn't guide her, more like held her head whilst he created the rhythm he wanted, usually aggressive. But Daryl would be different, for Daryl, she would try.

She looked up from her position on his chest, pushing her hand downwards to cup his dick gently. "There's plenty we can do without condoms." She murmured huskily up at him and he smiled. She felt him grow underneath her fingers and she shuffled further down the bed before he could say anything to her.

As he felt her hot, wet mouth close around him, he let out a sight of contentment, not believing his fucking luck.


	11. Chapter 11

Author's Note: Love and thanks to you kind folks. That was my first published foray into a more detailed mature situation, so glad to hear it went down well! You find me on Twitter/Tumblr under SepticLovebite. I have a fairly foul mouth, just to warn you! :)

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When Carol woke up, she briefly wondered why she was naked. They hardly ever slept in bed clothes or less, just in case they had to move on quickly in the night. Then she heard the deep, heavy breathing behind her and felt the warm hand resting inside her thigh and she remembered. Daryl wasn't a cuddler but she found she didn't mind. He slept only a few inches away, on his front, one foot caught up with hers and his hand touching her leg.

She knew sex could be good. She had memories of some of her college exploits. But she didn't realise there could be so much fun had without sex. And it _was_ fun. Despite her initial worry that she would be no good at it, Daryl had no complaints as she moved her mouth up and down his length, only growing in size as she worked. He put his hand to the back of her head and she wondered if he was going to hold her there while he took charge but he only ran his fingers through her short hair, letting her take control. It was a pleasant surprise and he only groaned, never commenting on her techinique. It was a good ego boost. He had good stamina, for someone who hadn't had sex for a long time, as far as she knew. Her jaw began to ache and she had to alternate between her tongue and her hands, not that Daryl complained, as she took him back in her mouth, his fingers clenched around her skull, pulling her head back slightly.

"I'm gonna come." He panted out eventually, wanting her to take her mouth away. She pulled back from his fingertips, taking the hand from her head and clasping his fingers in her own over his stomach as she pushed her head further down his shaft, trying to take him as deep as possible. He clearly wasn't used to such an act and she smiled inwardly at his the surprise on his face, a moment later she felt his semen flood the back of her mouth, trickling down her throat. She swallowed the thick liquid and licked at the excess from the head of his cock as it softened and she looked up at him with pleasure as he recovered himself, trembling slightly as he took in deep breaths.

Once Daryl stopped seeing stars, he pulled her up by the arm she rested on his stomach, pulling her up so she lay flush on top of him. Never had a woman done what she did. In the past, if he'd ever been with a girl who was willing to go down on him, they always pulled away at the last moment and he had come to expect it from every female.

"You are gonna get me killed, ya know." He groaned, pulling her down to him by the neck to press his lips to hers. She smiled against his mouth, letting him push her lips apart. The act surprised her, because Ed would never ever touch her lips after she'd been where she had been but Daryl didn't seem to care and she wondered if he could taste his seed as his tongue toyed with hers. She would have to stop comparing him with Ed, she decided, because clearly there wasn't even a competition at all.

Eventually she pulled away, trying to get her breath back because she could feel his hand creeping further down, skimming over her ass and resting there.

"I'm not going to lie and say I've done it quite like _that _before." She murmured bashfully and Daryl stopped his ministrations at her neck to look at her, one eyebrow raised.

"Coulda fuckin' fooled me." He told her, holding her tight so he could roll them over, pressing his weight onto her. His hand slid between their bodies and Carol gasped in appreciation, drawing her legs slightly apart to allow him access. She would let him give her the second orgasm that was cruelly taken from her earlier in the evening.

TWDTWDTWD

Daryl woke up just minutes after she did, stretching his limbs before turning to look at her.

"Don't tell me you were watchin' me fuckin' sleep." He greeted her, sliding closer. "Cos I ain't above kickin' ya ass outta this bed."

"No!" She scoffed, drawing the bed sheet a little higher. "You do pull some god-awful faces in your sleep though." She teased, turning from her side to her back.

"Fuckin' liar." He told her, closing the gap between them and rolling on top of her. She felt his dick line up between her thighs and she would only have to arch up to him for it to slip between her slick folds. She briefly considered the "pull out" method of contraception before mentally scolding herself for the thought. A stupid idea, she knew, one that she could possibly live to regret.

Daryl seemed to be thinking the same thing. He hovered over her, propped up on his elbows, not quite doing anything.

She shook her head and let out a laugh. "We are ridiculous. Come on." She pushed herself up and he sat up with her, the blankets pooling around their hips. "I thought you'd promised a trip into town today?"

Daryl pushed up from her, rising from the bed, picking up clothes from the floor and pulling them on. Carol took her time, hunting for something clean and dry in the pile that lay in the corner of the room. She mentally noted the need to wash everything later that morning.

She'd only got as far as her underwear by the time he was dressed, boots, coat and crossbow too. She wondered if she should kiss him goodbye or something. It didn't seem natural though. Not that she objected to kissing him at all, but putting it into a routine seemed a little scary, a bit like a married couple. It was way too early to be putting a label on anything. She could imagine him running out the door if she tried. No, she would leave that side of things to him. Continue as normal, housewife to the entire group.

"Gonna go drag Glenn's ass up and get outta here, see if we can get back by dinner." He told her as he hunted through the fallen clothing for the pair of pants that contained the keys to the truck.

Carol spotted them at the bottom of the bed and she fished in the back pocket, throwing the key at him, clucking her to herself. Honestly, she had never noticed how untidy was before. She was sure he wasn't like this back at the farm. Was it only since they had taken to sleeping in the same room? Did he expect her to pick up after him now? She pretended to herself that she would put a stop to that, but truth was, what else did she have to do? She had taken the role as housekeeper, along with Lori since they first met. Not that she minded because she loved to keep busy. Having four walls around them gave her more to do and she was grateful.

He nodded his thanks to her and touched her arm as he passed her and he was gone before she pulled a shirt over her head.

TWDTWDTWD

The sun was shining as Carol scrubbed at the evergrowing mound of dirty clothes out on the garden patio. There was a nip in the air, but she pulled on a sweatshirt, rolling the sleeves up to the elbows to get stuck in. Lori was beside her, wringing out each item after Carol scrubbed them and Rick was making noise somewhere behind them, constructing makeshift lines for the clean things to dry out on.

She felt like she hadn't really spoken to these people for days. Weeks. She saw them everyday but it was like they were old friends that had moved away. For a long time, she was locked inside her own head, just barely going through the motions, trapped with thoughts of death and hopelessness and bitterness. Then the door opened and he walked in. Her thoughts were consumed by him. How he smelt, how he spoke, how he touched her. Being stuck in that truck all day only made the situation more intense. It felt like it was just the two of them, facing whatever came their way. It probably wasn't healthy to have your whole existence depend solely on one person, she thought.

Lori still looked peaky, morning sickness had plagued her for far longer than was fair, but their situation wasn't helping. Carol felt a wave of guilt that she hadn't even asked her friend how she was feeling in a long while.

"Still struggling, Lori?" She nodded towards the woman, who was sipping at a bottle of water in between every piece of clothing.

Lori nodded. "It's not easing off at all." She groaned. "I never suffered this bad with Carl."

"Well, it's the stress of our situation. Maybe when we finally settle down a bit, it'll calm down." She gave Lori a reassuring smile, a little more confident than she felt. She wouldn't allow thoughts of a future where this baby wasn't born form fully in her mind, but her heart lurched at knowledge that she would probably be expected to be there at the birth. Hershel would take charge no doubt, but she was the only other person who could possibly understand what Lori was going through. The possible complications at birth. She would ask if they could go looking for books on the matter, closer to the time she thought.

"I hope so." Lori turned back to look at Rick, who was making his way down the garden, cursing as one of his lines collapsed, dropping the wet clothes into the overgrown grass. "Tell me, Carol, have you spoken to Beth in the last couple of days?" She dropped her voice and her gaze fell on the open kitchen window.

Carol looked to the house and she could hear the young girl clinking glasses around, Carl was with her, jabbering away about something or another.

"No, she doesn't seem to _want_ to talk to me. Not since..." She took a breath, thinking back to the last time Beth had spoken to her. "Not since that night with Andrew." She stopped her scrubbing to think it over. She'd been so wrapped up in her own experiences of that night, she hadn't thought about how Beth was. Because after Andrew, there was Daryl...once again she realised she really needed to bring herself back to reality.

"I know that what happened that night, was far, far worse for you than it was for her." Lori hesitated, choosing her words carefully. "But she's not doin' so great. I thought she'd come past the behaviour that we saw at the farm, the suicidal tendencies -" Lori stopped abruptly and Carol knew why. Lori knew how she had been feeling, Daryl was right. They all knew, he was just the only one brave enough to say something to her. A wave of shame rushed through her and she couldn't explain why. "- I mean, she's so young. She can't handle this. She told Maggie that she hates herself for what she did."

Carol was perplexed, had she missed something in her Daryl-induced haze? "What did she do?"

Lori quirked an eyebrow. "What she _didn't_ do." She clarified. "That night. She said she just watched as he hurt you."

"But I don't blame her for that!" Carol exclaimed. "It wasn't her fault, Lori. It happened so fast and you're right, she is young, she's a child for goodness sake! I wouldn't have expected it off Carl, or you or, or Sophia." She was truly shocked that the young girl blamed herself. She was hardly much older than her own little girl had been, still a little girl herself. And she had been so sheltered, even more so than Sophia. She'd never seen Walkers like her own daughter had, not until they had to leave the farm. She had never experienced living people doing bad things, like Sophia did. "He was hellbent on having someone Lori, I would never have put Beth in front of me for that." The thought made her well up. Poor, poor Beth. And Carol hadn't even noticed.

"Hey." Lori put an arm out, grasping Carol's. "It's ok. She will be ok. If you could just give her a hug or something, I'm sure she'll be fine."

"No, it's not just that." Carol picked up the shirt she had dropped. "I didn't even notice she was suffering! I've been so wrapped up in what's been happening-" She was about to say Daryl's name but stopped herself just in time. She wasn't quite ready to explain the odd pairing of her and Daryl.

"You have a right to take care of yourself first, Carol." Lori pulled her arm away, reaching for her bottle of water again. "Besides, Daryl has been keeping you busy." Her last comment was a sly one, said with a smile in her voice and Carol turned to her, mouth agape.

Carol hesitated before she spoke. "I don't know what you mean." She turned away from Lori, scrubbing at some invisible stain. Lori just raised an eyebrow at her. Carol's shoulders slumped in defeat. "Don't go telling everyone, alright? It's a new thing...hell, I don't know if it's even a thing."

Lori let out a giggle. "I knew it. You two are terrible at keeping secrets. Well, Daryl is." Carol looked at her questioningly. "The man looks like he wants to eat you up. I think the term I've heard it being called is...eye-fucking?" Lori held back a grin and Carol burst into peals of laughter that had Rick looking up from his spot at the bottom of the garden.

"We do no such thing!" She argued.

Lori just smirked at her and turned back to her pile of laundry.

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There wasn't much opportunity to talk to Beth until later that evening. Only when she went to search for the younger girl did she realise how much she did try to avoid her. There was always something that needed to be done everytime she had a chance to go looking.

The men returned by late afternoon, laden with bits and pieces and Daryl gave her a nod as he walked past her, hand brushing her butt in a move that was so subtle she barely felt it. She turned and gave him a small smile before disappearing to sort through the boxes of food.

He came in when she was alone in the kitchen, Lori was putting plates on the dining room table and Carol was just about to dish out their meal of rice and tinned vegetables mixed in a tomato sauce.

"A good day then?" She asked, wondering if he would get what she meant.

"Very." He told her, resting against the counter just next to her, fingers drumming against the marble. He leaned over to her, mouth brushing her ear. "After dinner, you are gonna be real tired, get yourself an' early night." He told her, his tone suggesting that she would be doing everything other than sleeping.

"And I suppose you'll be tired after your big day today and you'll need an early night, especially if you want to go hunting in the morning." She murmured back, reaching over him for a serving spoon from the pot across the counter.

He grabbed her wrist mid way over and pulled her closer. "Damn straight." He pressed his mouth to hers, pushing her back against the counter and she let him, hands finding their way into his hair as his tongue invaded her mouth, almost taking away her ability to breathe. There was hiss from behind her and she pulled away to turn the heat down on the overflowing pan of rice and he whipped her back round to face him.

"Fuck dinner." He growled at her and she pulled away just as his lips grazed her skin.

"Hey!" She cried out in mock indignation. "We can't all be hunter-gatherers, you know." She turned away from him with a smile, just as Lori came back in the room.

Daryl let out a groan under his breath and walked away before he said or did something that he'd probably regret in front of Lori.

They ate scattered about the living room and when she saw Beth cross legged on the floor by the empty fireplace she sat down beside her, ignoring the young girl's startled look and the empty seat next to Daryl.

She waited until they finished and as Beth went to get up, she pulled her back down, handing off their plates to a knowing Lori. "I need to talk to you." She told her, loud enough for Daryl to hear as he passed.

She waited until the others were out of ear shot before letting go of Beth's arm, shuffling to face her properly. She wondered how she should start the conversation, but decided with just coming out and saying it.

"What happened that night, with Andrew, it wasn't your fault, okay? There was nothing you could have done to make it better." Beth looked up at her through already teary eyes. "It was just chance, who ended up in front of him, alright?" It wasn't strictly true, of course, Carol had known which side of the car Andrew would attempt to get into and she had pushed Beth in the opposite direction.

"I should've done somethin'." Beth pressed a hand to her mouth, the words almost a whisper.

"What could you have done, Beth? He was bigger than both of us put together. It doesn't even matter, I'm here and I'm fine." Carol reached out and took the girl's hand, but it was limp in her own.

"He was goin' to-"

"But he didn't." Carol tried not to shudder at the thought. She was convinced Andrew would've raped her too, but he didn't and that's all that mattered. "Beth, I do not blame you at all, alright? He died. I killed him."

"But how can you forgive me?" Beth finally found her grip, squeezing Carol's fingers.

"There is nothing to forgive. You can't go on living like this, hating yourself for something that happened by chance, that could have gone a million different ways, whether you did something or not." She pulled Beth into a hug, gripping her tight. "Please, promise, you'll try to forget about this. I don't want to think about it anymore either."

She heard Beth sniff against her shoulder and finally felt her head nod up and down. "I'll try." She whispered.

"Good girl." She patted the girl's back before pulling away, standing up and extending a hand to her. Beth took it and they walked out the room together, towards the hustle and bustle of the kitchen. In the corner of her eye, she saw the door to the study swing shut and she nudged Beth into the kitchen with a final smile before turning back to the study.

As her hand twisted the knob, she was grateful that _soon _was here. _Finally_.


	12. Chapter 12

Author's Notes: Thank you for the reads/reviews/tweets and tumbl's. Find me on them at SepticLovebite. Just to let you know, I drop the c-bomb near the end, if that offends you then you may wanna hit the back button.

TWDTWDTWD

The town they headed into was crawling with Walkers. Literally crawling with them. There had hardly been any contact with anymore than one or two at a time since they left the Greene farm and it set Daryl on edge. Glenn seemed less perturbed by it all, but he was making all the runs these days, Daryl had been holding back to tend to Carol after her injuries, preferring to hunt in the nearby forests and fields.

It was kind of liberating though, to take out his frustrations on any flesh eater that had the misfortune to run into him. Because he was beyond frustrated. He'd gone months and months without any sexual contact. It was hardly on his list of priorities after the world had gone to shit and before that the novelty of sleeping around had worn off. It was a habit Merle had given him, get drunk, get high or both sometimes, find the nearest willing woman and get down to it. Didn't matter who they were, just a body to fuck. He never stayed the night, never took a number, never gave a shit. It got old though, particularly after there was that shit scary moment where he thought he got one girl knocked up but it turned out she was already pregnant when Daryl took his turn. He put an end to it after that. Not that he was a saint or anything, but he was definitely choosier after that.

But Carol was literally killing him. There'd always been something about her, right from the day he handed her a pickaxe for her to beat the shit out of Ed Peletier's skull. She wasn't the reason he went out looking for Sophia when the little girl went missing, he would've done that for any kid, but she was the reason he kept looking when everyone else gave up.

She made him mad. So mad he could kill something. His attraction to her was something he couldn't even begin to get his head around in the beginning. She was clearly fucked up. Really fucked up. But so was he. Maybe because she came from a shitty homelife, like he did. But his attraction to her was muddled up with anger and fear. He was angry because he failed Sophia and in his darker moments, angry at Carol for failing her too. For not keeping a tighter hold on her child, for not rescuing her from her own father. No kid deserved what that bastard dished out. He hadn't deserved that either. He feared his own feelings, unsure how to deal with them because getting attached to anyone was a stupid move, bound to get you killed. Or left grieving when they died.

He feared that he would hurt her. She was fragile and soft. He was clumsy and awkward around other people at the best of time. That night, after Sophia, he ranted and raved at her, screaming in her face and she just took it. He almost hit her. He almost kissed her too. Both feelings were fighting to escape him and he had to fight them back down. Carol was fucking terrifying. Not because of what she said or did, but what she turned him into.

"Psst. Daryl!" Glenn pulled him out of his reverie, gesturing wildly towards the fire escape over his head. Daryl nodded and shouldered the crossbow to climb the metal rungs. Getting into the camping store they were aiming for was easy, two Walkers that went down without a fight and they were stacking up tents and sleeping bags. Glenn was doing a head count under his breath, trying to figure out how many they would need of each item.

"Hey, you and Carol would share, right?" He asked, throwing a spare tent aside.

Daryl jerked this head up at the question, pulling his attention from watching the front of the store. "What?"

"You and Carol, if we use the tents, you'd share?" Glenn looked at him as if he had two heads.

"Don't fuckin' stick your nose in when it comes to me an' Carol." He snapped at the younger man.

"Dude, I'm just asking! Less to carry that way. God. I don't care what you and Carol get up to, I got enough of my own problems. Sheesh." Glenn didn't seem all that perturbed by Daryl's snarling.

"It ain't anyone's fuckin' business. Can't keep a damn thing quiet 'round here." He muttered but he saw Glenn's ears pick up at his words. "Shut up, Glenn." The other man hadn't even said anything, but Daryl knew he was about to. Kid was too smug for his own good and Daryl had gone and given the game away. "Keep your trap shut, no mouthin' off to Maggie."

Glenn just nodded and moved onto the sleeping bags silently.

"So..uh, shall I just get you and Carol a double sleeping bag?" He bit out with a chuckle and Daryl settled for giving him the filthiest look he could muster.

The kid was just begging for an ass whooping.

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He practically crashed the truck trying to get it back to the house they were calling home for the next few days. His foot didn't touch the brake, eager to get out of the town that was starting to give him the spooks.

They hadn't really needed anything urgently. Sure, food, fuel and ammo were always required, but they had enough to get by a little while longer. They could've scavenged houses they passed along the way. He gave them the excuse of the tents and things just so he could hunt down a box of condoms. It was so ridiculous he could almost laugh. He risked his neck for a box of condoms. If Glenn had even dared suggest such a thing, he would've ripped him a new one.

She had driven him crazy, where all that mattered was her, getting under her skin, getting under her, over her, inside her. Knowing that he could bring her to the edge just by looking at her. She wanted him, he wanted her. He wondered if the sex would even be as good as it had been without it. Because he was pretty convinced that the biggest turn on of his life was her writhe against him while he got her off with one hand. He could do _that_.

She took her sweet time getting to him in the study, stopping after dinner to talk to Beth. He nearly dragged her away but he figured even a naive little girl like her would clock on to his intentions. He'd been fiddling with his gun, finding the bullets he'd hunted out in town, refilling it on the desk. She shut the door softly behind her, twisting the little key to lock it. He could hear the noises of the others trailing off, taking themselves into the living room and upstairs.

She gave him one of her soft smiles, one side of her mouth curving up, sitting on the bed to pull off her sneakers and socks. She was slow in her movements, taking the time to undo each button on her shirt and he watched her undress from his spot at the desk.

The bruises were minimal, just patches of yellow across her stomach that she claimed not to even feel, hardly visible in low lighting. Her bra came after the shirt, breasts dropping slightly from their cotton prison and she worked on unbuttoning her pants, stopping when she realised he was watching her intently. She blushed and he thought that was when she was her most beautiful. When she didn't even realise it. He extended a hand out to her and she took it, jeans open, slipping slightly on her slim hips.

His hands wrapped around her hips, pulling her close to him, his nose level to her stomach and he pressed a kiss there, over the fading marks on her skin. Her hand went to the back of his head, fingers twisting his hair, massaging his scalp.

Carol couldn't resist smiling as he trailed kisses up her mottled stomach, soft, featherlike touches that were so unlike him. Normally he kissed her like it would their last, hard and fast, almost aggressive. He trailed upwards, mouth closing over one nipple, lightly nipping at it, tongue running over her breast. She let out a gasp and he smirked against her skin, pulling his mouth away only to tend to her other breast.

His hand pushed her jeans down to her knees, just allowing him enough access to push his hand between her thighs, fingers trailing their way down to that hot notch, curling inside of her. She stiffened at his touch, fingers pulling tighter on his hair. He watched her as her head lolled backwards, eyes shut as he worked at her, he had to keep a grip on her waist to keep her standing and he wondered if he could bear to contain himself to let her come before he pushed her to the bed.

As if she could read his mind, he could feel the pressure building inside her and just as he thought it would only be another minute or two until she clenched around his fingers, she pulled his hand away, panting and gasping.

"I can't wait any longer." She told him, releasing his hair to tug on his shirt and he lifted his arms to let her pull the offending garment off. Her jeans fell to the floor and she pulled her feet from them as he toed off his boots, hurrying to undo his belt for him and he chuckled at her sudden enthusiasm.

"Ain't no goddamn rush, woman." He growled at her softly, pulling her trembling hands from his belt buckle to undo it himself. She sat down on the bed, waiting for him and he reached over to pull the box of condoms from under the pillow where he had hidden them. "I spent the day wit' Glenn and a bunch o' droolin' Geeks for these, so I ain't fuckin' rushin'."

She just rolled her eyes, pulling him onto the bed with her and he put himself on top of her, stopping her from getting ahead of him.

"And I have been sitting on my hands all day, waiting for you. Slow can come later." She panted into his mouth, prising the condom box from his hand to pull one foil square free. "Just fuck me already."

The curse was odd coming from her, she never swore but it was enough to make Daryl's dick even harder against her thigh and he snatched the condom from her, ripping the corner with his teeth and rolling it on quickly. She thought that perhaps she should let her self swear more often because he pushed himself against her and as she raised her hips to meet his, he sank into her and groaned as she clenched herself around him.

It took a minute to find a rhythm together and she drew her legs around his waist to drive him deeper into her, encouraging him to go faster. Despite his earlier words, he listened to her request, propping himself on one arm to give him leverage as he pushed himself in and out of her. She keened like an injured animal and he pressed his mouth to hers to shut her up, lest the whole house be hammering on the door wondering if he was killing her.

She squeezed herself so tight against him, he was amazed he didn't come on the spot. He didn't know what he expected from Carol, but it was never this. She was like a goddamn addict, bucking and writhing underneath him, desperate for her fix and it turned him on more than he could ever believe it.

She was fighting to control the pace and he decided to let her, rolling them over so he was underneath her and she pressed up from him to ride him properly, pushing her pelvis right against his so their bones hit each other almost painfully. Watching her would be his addiction, he decided, because she looked absolutely amazing as she ground against him, taking his hands in hers for balance, head tipped back in ecstasy.

He knew a few moments later, that he couldn't take much more and he pulled her down towards him, his hand slipping between their slick bodies to press his fingers to her clit, lightly rubbing at the hard nub and she took in a sharp breath as he worked and he knew she would come within seconds.

She was murmuring something under her breath that he couldn't hear, her face hovering over his, her features screwed up as her touched her a little more firmly and she ceased her bucking momentarily, her cunt gripping around his shaft so tight that he came himself before he expected, white clouding his vision and she slumped forward, breath ragged against his chest, her hands trembling as she fumbled to bring them to his face.

He caught her hands in his own and lifted his head to hers, pressing his mouth against her jaw, sucking and kissing his way to her mouth. Her skin had a slightly salty tang to it, a result of the light layer of sweat that clung to both their skins and she couldn't seem to get her breath back. She was whispering into his ear, so breathy that he couldn't quite catch all her words, although he did manage to catch her murmuring something about "never before" and "best ever" and he felt a swell of pride rise in his chest.

He couldn't believe he had known her this long and they hadn't done this sooner. She was perfect. They were perfect.


	13. Chapter 13

Author's Notes: Thank you. I believe some of you are pleased that they finally got down to it. ;)

TWDTWDTWD

The knocking on the door was faint at first, Carol only heard it in the back of her mind, as if it were the soundtrack to a dream she couldn't quite recall and she merely turned from her back to her side facing towards Daryl on the bed. Eventually, she became more alert and realised that the knocking was coming from the door to the study, still soft yet persistant. She nudged Daryl awake and jumped up from the bed, grabbing the first article of clothing she could reach, which happened to be Daryl's shirt and jamming it over her head. She heard Daryl behind her scrabbling for his pants as she twisted the key in the lock, yanking the door open.

She expected to see Rick or Glenn at the door, maybe calling Daryl to help dispatch some Walker that had strayed over the property boundary. What she didn't expect to see was Beth, hair dishevelled from sleep, clutching a mug of what looked like very weak coffee.

She tugged the shirt down her thighs bringing the door over half her body to hide her half-naked form somewhat, pushing out a hand to Daryl, gesturing that there was no emergency. He cursed under his breath, dropping his crossbow and slumping back on the bed.

"What's wrong?" She asked the younger girl, rubbing a hand over her eyes. Beth thrust the mug out to her, head to the floor.

"I tried to make breakfast, to-to help out. And I thought it would take longer, but it's nearly done, but I think I'm messing it up. Will you help me?" Beth blurted out her words quickly and Carol blinked slowly, trying to make out the meaning in her sleep filled haze.

"What time is it?" She took the mug from the girl, grimacing inwardly at her poor coffee making skills. It had to be early if even Daryl was dead asleep, he was always the first one up in the morning.

"I don't know. It's hasn't been light for long." Beth shifted her weight from one foot to another and Carol let out a small sigh.

"I'll just get dressed, two minutes. Thank you for the coffee." Beth nodded and scarpered back to the kitchen and Carol shut the door, allowing herself a grimace as she took a sip of the weak coffee, sugared way too much for her taste. Daryl had returned to the bed, pants still on but boots lying on the floor, one arm resting to shield his eyes.

"I've got to go help her before she ruins breakfast." She told him, setting the mug down to find her underwear and pants.

Daryl just let out a huff and she just shook her head in amusement. He was clearly unimpressed. She wasn't exactly thrilled to get up either, after all they had hardly any sleep last night and she was pretty sure he would've intended to wake her up for things that did not relate to breakfast.

"It's important to her. And it's important to make her feel better." She chided him lightly, slipping her panties on.

"It's even more important that ya get ya ass in this bed." He told her, grabbing her by the waist as she walked past him for her pants. She let him drag her to sit down beside his head, his arm slipping under the shirt to feel her skin against his fingertips.

"You haven't had enough already?" She asked, patting his cheek lightly, quirking her lips at his behaviour.

"I can skip whatever crap she's cookin' up for whatever you can cook up." He mumbled into her skin, face pressed into her back.

"Is that your best line? It needs some work." She joked and Daryl pushed her away half-heartedly and she slipped away from him to finish dressing. "Get up and get out of here already. I'll make sure there's something edible for you when you get back if you bring me something to cook for dinner."

He just grunted at her and she resisted ruffling his hair, like her fingers itched to do. Instead she just picked up the mug of coffee, leaving him in peace.

TWDTWDTWD

She didn't think it were possible for people to mess up powdered eggs, but Beth was exceptionally capable of doing do. The worktops were littered with half a dozen tins, residue of powdered egg and something sticky that Carol suspected was honey. There were two tins of ham, one opened and sliced haphazardly, the other was only a little way opened, the key to peel back the aluminum had been snapped.

"Right." She took a deep breath and rolled up her shirt sleeves. "What were you trying to make?"

"Eggs, tinned tomatoes, ham and there were some cracker things in the cupboard, I think they are still in date." Beth shook the box in question.

"Alright. I think we'll have to give these eggs a miss and make some fresh." Carol tried not to make a show of how difficult it was to scrape the dried and burnt mess into the sink. "Now, Carl and Glenn won't eat the tinned tomatoes, so we'll open a tin of spagetti O's for them. Lori isn't very good around ham these days, so we'll give her some extra eggs and I think we have a breakfast bar around here for her too."

Carol busied herself with tidying the empty tins and cleaning the dirty work surfaces, directing Beth in the direction of the plates and cutlery that would go out on the kitchen table for Carol to serve food.

She'd managed to discard the inedible messes, trying not to show disappointment in the waste. Every mouthful counted and nothing got thrown away if they could help it. Still, Beth was trying and Carol knew the importance of that. The younger girl reminded her of herself, just a few weeks ago. It was important to feel valued, to find a place in their little group. She was finding hers and she would help Beth find her own too.

Daryl came through the kitchen, crossbow shouldered and Carol handed him a bag of crackers and a cereal bar. He nodded his thanks and made room for Beth to scurry past him with a slightly frightened look on her face as she reached for the glasses.

"Now, Beth." Carol ignored Daryl as he leant against the counter, crunching on his breakfast and continued to teach Beth the art of cooking for such a fussy group when you mostly cooked over opened fire with canned and powdered ingredients. "Glenn and Carl are the fussiest eaters usually, if it resembles a vegetable they'll usually push it around their plates, so don't waste food by trying to force some actual vitamins into their diet. Lori is kind of sensitive to meat smells, but she can usually handle some rabbit especially if it's been seasoned." Carol pushed the empty tins into a refuse sack and handed them to the other girl.

"How do you remember all this stuff?" Beth asked, awestruck.

Carol let out a chuckle. "Been doing it long enough. T-Dog, Rick and Daryl are pretty good eaters, although I know T-Dog isn't struck on fish, not that we get all that much of it. So don't bother giving him the tinned stuff if you can." Carol used a knife to pry the aluminum from the broken can of ham. "Can you just drop that stuff outside, by the other bag?"

Beth nodded and skirted around Daryl to get to the door and Daryl pushed himself off the counter to tuck the remaining crackers back into the cupboard.

"How _do _ya remember that crap? And why do ya even give a shit? If Glenn and Carl wanna be fussy idiots, let 'em starve." He told her.

"Because it's important to them. Like I remember that you don't really like curry sauce or hotdog sausages. It keeps things a little bit more normal 'round here."

Daryl quirked an eyebrow at that. He didn't recall ever telling her he wasn't particularly keen on either of those things. He ate what was available without fuss, although it always took him that little bit longer to finish his plate when it was something he didn't like. He didn't know whether he was impressed or a little bit fearful that she noticed something as small as that. How closely did she watch him?

"It's not just you I've learnt these things from." She told him, whipping the tea cloth she held against his arm. Carol saw the look in his eyes, the kind of look someone might have when they realise they had a bunny boiler on their tail. "What else have I got to do? You said to me once, that having some worth wasn't about using a gun. I have to find my worth in other ways and if that means being a Stepford wife, then so be it." She stopped when she realised that her words were inching closer to a speech.

He just nodded and Beth tumbled back into the house, huffing slightly. "There's a deer down the bottom of the garden." She told him, a hand rubbing across her brow. Daryl perked up instantly at her words, stalking out the door without a second look at either of them and as he headed up the garden path she could see him scanning the area, looking for his prize.

"Ok, how about we wait for a few people to wake up before we actually begin cooking? We'll get some coffee on, prep a few bits and then see who's about after that." Carol asked the girl, almost as if it wasn't her idea at all and Beth nodded her agreement.

"Carol, why is Daryl so scary all the time?"

Carol just laughed and turned herself back to the cupboards, hoping to find some better coffee.

TWDTWDTWD

That evening, there was venison for dinner. It took him hours to find the deer, a runt of a thing that looked like it needed a good meal itself. It wasn't his finest kill, but it would do for a couple of meals. He cleaned it himself, handing Carol chunks of flesh to slice up and cook. She wasn't squeamish at all, despite her aversion to using a weapon on a Walker, simply rolling up her sleeves and getting on with it. Beth and Carl lingered in the background, he washed up outside and watched the three of them through the kitchen window, Carol's head was bent down low, but he could see she was speaking to them, but the two watched with an expression of morbid curiosity that only children had and he heard Beth's squeal when Carol lifted her hands to them, fingers waggling, red with blood.

He had to stop himself from smiling at the scene, it was getting way too Brady Bunch meets the Addams Family for his liking. They needed to move on from this house, it was too small and it way too difficult to get some privacy. Daryl preferred the tents they used back at the Greene farm, where he could pitch up as far away as he wanted, free to come and go as he pleased. Now someone always knew where he was, what he was doing. It was kind of nice, to know that it was actually important to the rest of them. That what he thought could be important, that what he did was relevant. He had a say in the safety of the group as whole. But it was kind of shit scary too. There were expectations. Requirements to be met. People looked to him.

He put forth the idea of getting further north to Rick that evening. They'd always intended to go as far as they could, no set destination in mind, just thinking of getting away. He thought perhaps they were getting too comfortable here, but Daryl wasn't. It wasn't just the property they squeezed themselves into, but the area itself. The town nearest wouldn't be enough for them, the forestry wasn't good enough for hunting and the river not close enough. It just didn't feel right. Even if they just made it to Nebraska or Iowa he would be happier. He'd been deer hunting in Nebraska once and he knew that there would be pheasants and wild turkey. Nebraska was one of the less populated states too, which meant more supplies and less Walkers. And they usually got snow in the winter.

Rick seemed reasonably favourable when he mentioned it that evening, getting the maps out to have a look at potential routes.

"I've been wondering about whether the snow and the cold will affect the Walkers. Wouldn't they just fall apart? Or freeze?" Rick pondered.

"Yeah, but the cold could end up killin' us too. It's gonna slow us down and if it don't slow 'em some, then it's over for us too." Daryl cleared his throat, turning his gaze back to the route Rick had traced out with his finger.

"We've got to try. But Nebraska, it's the last stop. This side of winter at least. Glenn found a more detailed map of Nebraska in the library in town today, there's a couple of places worth looking at, for a more permanent place. A holiday resort, a national park, couple of the more isolated trailer parks and an army base."

"It's gonna take weeks to check these out, clear out any Geeks, build supplies." Daryl didn't want to put a dampener on things, but he suspected Rick was living a little in a fantasy world. He knew of the sheriff's hope for some authority to be found, take them in, keep them safe. Daryl did not have the same faith. In the old world, he had learned from a young age to distrust authority and he held firm in that belief now. They were on their own. "There's noone out there waiting for us, Rick."

Rick took a breath, turning away from Daryl and the maps. "I know. I know that. I do." He ran a hand over his weary face. "We'll get going day after tomorrow, then."

Daryl nodded. Nebraska it was, then.


	14. Chapter 14

Author's Note: Thanks for the lovin', guys.

TWDTWDTWD

Carol tried not to listen to the argument that was in full swing outside the kitchen window. Lori was raging, her voicing getting louder with every barb she threw at Rick. They'd not been right since they left the Greene farm, but Carol had thought that the worst part had passed over. Clearly her head was in the clouds because by the sound of it, the worst was only just beginning.

Dinner had been cleared up and Carol had taken up the task of packing up the last of their food, distributing all the ready to eat goods equally, in case they were unable to stop the convoy for meals. She'd taken note of things they would need fairly soon and filled up smaller bottles they had with water taken from the gallon drums that would be strapped down in the back of Daryl's truck.

She needed to step outside to pick up the drums, but was fearful of stepping into the middle of a Grimes meltdown, although somebody would have to soon, the rising voices would be sure to draw any unwanted visitors to them.

She looked over their heads out the window to the trees in the distant, seeing if Daryl had returned. He was gone out for a final hunt, a little more meat for her to cook that could be eaten on their journey the next day. It was getting dark, the nights had started drawing in, particularly as they travelled further north.

The Greene girls, Glenn and Carl were upstairs, sorting through clothes that had been left behind in this place, trying to gear them all up for a colder time than they were used to. Carol finally had new boots, but they felt alien on her feet, clumpy and awkward, despite being her size. She had been wearing them around the house all day, trying to break them in now, in case they had real running to do later.

She pleased to add a couple more sweaters to her wardrobe, although there was not another practical coat for her. Still, she found herself a little attached to the green dress coat, especially now she had managed to scrub the last of the blood from the sleeves. She was pulled from her thoughts when she looked up from the kitchen table to check the window for Daryl again and she smiled when she saw him come up the bottom of the long garden, a string of game slung over his shoulder.

"You two gonna shut the hell up? I just took out a Walker that was stumblin' its way over to you two." She heard him say to Lori and Rick with disdain as he pushed past them to get in the house. He slammed the kitchen door behind him, tossing the string of animals onto the counter. Lori and Rick resumed their arguing, albeit a little bit more quietly.

"I thought I was going to have to knock their heads together." She told him by way of greeting, squeezing the last of the tins into the carboard box beside her.

"She's a crazy bitch." Was all he had to say on the matter as he shrugged off his outer clothes.

"Don't." Carol knew of Daryl's aversion to Lori. It seemed the more Lori argued with Rick, the more Daryl seemed to get irritated with her. "She's pregnant. She's scared. And they're arguing about Carl, it's not crazy."

Daryl sneered at the suggestion and Carol just sighed, choosing to ignore it. Lori came into the kitchen and stomped through, ignoring Carol's hesitant smile.

She thought she heard Daryl curse under his breath but Rick followed his wife in before she could call him on it. She didn't want to argue with Daryl over her friend anyway. Some people just couldn't get on and it wasn't worth the hassle.

"Just the one Walker?" Rick asked.

Daryl nodded.

"Do you think it would be a ridiculous idea if I taught Carl how to drive?" Carol turned from her packing to look at Rick, but the question was directed at Daryl.

"Nope. Couldn't hurt." Daryl started his work on skinning the rabbit nearest to him and Carol went to the drawer to pull out the things she would need to cook the meat.

"Thank you." Rick gestured a hand in their direction, stalking off, probably to find Lori and use Daryl's agreement to strengthen his argument.

Daryl put down his knife and sidled up to her slowly, pushing his hip against hers. "Don't get pissed at me over Lori fuckin' Grimes." His mouth brushing against her ear, he pressed a small kiss at the side of her jaw and Carol turned quickly, catching his lips in hers. She kept her hands on the knives in her hands as she pushed her mouth against his, tongue running over his lips and into his open mouth. She saw his hand come up to her face and she pulled away sharply, waggling the knife in her hand.

"Get those paws away from me, these clothes are clean." She told him, taking a step backwards. Daryl huffed, looking down at his hands, grimy and reddened with rabbit blood.

"Didn't say that last night." He muttered churlishly. She stifled at smile and turned back to her work. It was true. She definitely said the exact opposite if she could recall. She was more vocal during sex than she had ever been with anyone else. Daryl liked it, she could tell and it encouraged her to keep on. She had to rein herself in more than once so they didn't disturb the others. She'd never had the freedom to express herself that way before. It was wonderful, but it was exhausting. Just a few snatched hours sleep in the last three nights and probably even less in the coming days. Except now she would mind even more because it wasn't for pleasure but because they would be on the road and the chances of having privacy at night would be slim, if they even stopped at all.

She ignored him and just took the raw meat from him to cut into strips, shaking her head to physically remove the thoughts that were making her blush.

TWDTWDTWD

By nightfall, the group were packing the last of their things into the vehicles. Carol watched as Daryl revved the engine on the bike from the back of the truck, testing and tweaking parts that she didn't know. He handled the bike softly, as if it were precious cargo. She hadn't seen him so gentle before, except perhaps, with her. She smiled at the memory of the last time he touched her so gently and rested herself against the side of the truck.

"So, maybe you should ride the bike for tomorrow, if the weather stays dry?" She suggested. Daryl shut the engine off and pulled himself from the bike.

"Nah, s'alright." He pushed his hair from his eyes before jumping from the truck bed.

"Well actually..." Carol pulled away and tailed off, pretty certain that he would be glad to ride the bike when she told him her reasons why. "Lori has asked if she can ride the truck tomorrow. She needs to take a break from Rick. And I know you won't want to be there -"

"Fine. I'll take the bike. One day. And she ain't drivin' the truck. At all." He told her, cutting her off the moment he realised Lori would be in close proximity to him otherwise. Carol folded her arms and nodded. "I mean it, she's a shitty driver."

Carol let out a laugh. "I'm going to bed."

She had fallen asleep by the time he made it into the study, waking up with a start when she heard the door click. He kicked off his boots, pulling the weapons from his waist and she rubbed her eyes when he flicked on a torch.

"What's wrong?" She asked groggily, pushing herself up from the mattress and running a hand on her face.

"Nothin'." He sat beside her on the bed, pulling a gun from the back of his waistband and setting it between them on the mattress. "I want ya t' take this tomorrow."

Carol looked down at the gun. It was the one she had used, just once. The one she killed Andrew with. "I don't want it." She pushed herself into the centre of the bed, drawing the blankets up a little higher. Daryl caught her arm as she tried to pull it under the covers and he pressed the gun into her hand. She let her fingers curl around the barrel, it was heavier than she remembered.

"Well, you need it. If it's just you an' Lori in the truck, you need at least one weapon between ya."

"I don't want it, Daryl." She dropped it onto the mattress. "I really don't want that thing."

"Tough shit, you're takin' it. I ain't lettin' you get in the truck without me an' without a gun. It's not even negotiable." He took the gun away and put in on the desk, before returning to the bed and sliding in beside her.

"I just don't want you to be unarmed." He murmured, bringing himself closer to her. He reached out and touched her waist, she was already naked under the covers and he found it turned him on that she was ready and waiting for him like that. Carol responded to his touch, pushing herself into his outstretched hand.

"Why are you still wearing clothes?" She muttered back, turning around to face him properly. Carol slid one cold palm under his shirt and he flinched as her icy fingertips brushed his warm chest.

"You told me you wanted actual sleep tonight." He told her, but he pulled his shirt off anyway.

"Oh shut up." Carol pulled him towards her and pressed her mouth to his, his tongue immediately invading her mouth as he rolled on top of her. He pulled her thigh up, pushing his own leg between hers and she gasped as his denim clad knee brushed along her crotch.

Her hands went to his belt, fumbling at the buckle and he let her struggle, putting his hand on one breast, thumbing her nipple to a peak. Eventually she pulled the leather apart, unbuttoning his jeans and pushing them down his hips with his underwear. She reached under the pillow where they had stashed the condoms, pulling one shakily from the box. She could feel him hard against her, pressing against her clit and she had to force her hips to stop from jutting up to push him into her.

She almost tore the condom trying to pull it from the foil and he pulled his hand from her breast to take it from her trembling fingers. She put her hands to his face as he rolled it on deftly, taking the time to run his fingers over her wet entrance, pushing two fingers into her depths, slow and firm, enough to drive her crazy.

"You are such a bastard." She managed to breathe out, moving her fingers to his neck, pulling his face to hers.

He smirked at the insult that was actually a compliment, because he knew even after a few short days, that she loved it when he teased her. He pulled his fingers from her to push his jeans down to his ankles, kicking them free. When he came back to her, she took his dick in her hand, guiding him to her and he let out a contented sigh as he sank into her.

She was more relaxed on this night, once he was inside her she calmed down some, letting him thrust himself into her languidly, taking the time to run his hands over her skin as her fingernails pressed into his back.

He felt like he could do this forever, rocking his hips into hers, pressing his mouth over her jaw and neck, sucking at the soft skin there, wondering idly if he would leave marks on her and finding that he wouldn't mind if anyone else saw them.

She moaned and sighed under him, her breaths becoming more ragged and shallow. Daryl slowed his pace even further, not wanting her to come too soon. She squirmed under him and he responded by grasping her thigh, pushing her leg up for her shin to rest against his chest and he found this new angle illicited a louder response and she pressed her own hand against her mouth to stop herself from releasing what she thought might become a scream.

Her skin was slick under his hands and he was finding it hard to keep his grip on her after several minutes, they were both sticky with perspiration from the exertion. He released her leg from his grasp, resuming their orginal position, his favourite way of being with her. Perfectly aligned, his chest against hers, their feet tangled up together.

She was muttering under her breath again, saying things he could hardly make out and it made him want to drive into her deeper, just the sheer fact that being inside her drove her to senselessness. He thrust faster and she mewled into his mouth, fingernails scratching at his back, fingers tangling in his fair, pulling at his scalp. He changed his angle slightly and she only lasted a few more seconds before she suddenly stiffened and stilled and he pulled his head from her to watch her face scrunch up, the breath hitch in her throat as she came around him. It was enough to set him off, watching her, and one more thrust was all it took for him to come with a groan, pushing his head into her neck as she tugged on his hair.

He slumped against her and after a moment she relaxed her vice-like grip on his dick and his hair, but neither made a move to separate. She was panting still, eyes closed but a smile on her lips. He pressed a kiss to the corner of her mouth and moved off of her, deftly rolling off the used condom and putting it aside.

"I can't believe ya wanna ride wit' Lori when you can ride with me." He moaned into her back as she turned over and he pressed himself against her.

"We'll be driving a truck. We wouldn't exactly be missing out on anything!" She laughed.

He raised an eyebrow but with her back to him, she wouldn't have seen it, although she did not mistake his silence. She turned her head to look over her shoulder at him. "We would not be doing _that_ in the truck, Daryl." He just looked at her deadpan. "Oh come on, we are supposed to be adults, not horny teenagers." She chuckled, shrugging him from her back playfully and turning around to face him. "I'm going to sleep. You are exhausting and seeing as I am the only one driving tomorrow, I need my rest."

She pushed herself further away from him, giving him a few inches of space. She was always careful to never appear clingy or needy. He never initiated much contact outside of the room, except when she was injured and she was always aware that she could frighten him off. She suspected that despite being more than satisfactory in the bedroom, that Daryl was not skilled in the other parts of a relationship. But then, she supposed, neither was she really. Still, she would let him lead the way when it came to this. There was no room for messy break ups or arguments when your life depended on the people you lived and travelled with.

She pulled the blankets that had bunched around their knees and covered herself. Daryl got up to switch off the flashlight that had been left on the desk and he surprised her by returning to her side of the bed, pushing himself into the gap between the edge of the bed and her body. Carol shuffled over to let him in but he stopped her with a hand to her waist before she could go too far.

It was as if he could read her mind, she thought as she drifted off to sleep, her back pressed up against his chest and his hand curled over her hip.

TWDTWDTWD

They woke up later than they intended to. Usually Daryl was the first up, but she guessed that he needed the rest as much as she did because they both woke with a start when they heard the sharp knocking on the study door.

They dressed quickly and Carol left the gun on the desk alongside his, hoping he would forgot all about his insistence that she should have it. But there was no such luck. As she dropped her bag into the cab of the truck he came up behind her, reeling off instructions to her about how she shouldn't be crunching the gears, not to let Lori drive the truck and to stay behind Rick's car and in front of Glenn's at all times. She rolled her eyes as she turned away from him to tuck her coat away in the truck and jumped when she felt the coldness of metal against the small of her back as he tucked the gun into her waistband.

"Just have it in the truck, alright?" He told her before moving off to the bike at the front of their convoy and no other farewell for her, not that she expected any public display.

They'd been on the road for over an hour and Lori still hadn't paused to take a breath. They were through the middle of Missouri and Carol had to really focus her mind to hear what Lori was saying and focus on the road.

"He's not even 12, he can barely see over the top of a steering wheel, it's absolutely ridiculous that Rick think's he's capable of controlling a car." Lori told her, arms folded, feet propped on the dash.

"He's only trying to protect Carl." Carol said placatingly. "And he does carry a gun after all. It's not like he's completely unused to handling things he should be too young for."

"Don't even get me started on the gun! I fought against that one too, but I was outruled once again." Lori was full of righteous indignation now, arms gesticulating wildly. Carol knew that she was pregnant and therefore entitled to a little irrationality but it was a struggle not to roll her eyes. She felt instant guilt when she thought of it though, when did she become such a bad friend? Probably when started getting distracted by Daryl Dixon.

"I know that it's a difficult one. I know if it were Sophia, I wouldn't have wanted her near a gun or driving a car." She said her daughter's name without the usual pang in her chest whe she thought of her and she briefly wondered if this were a good or a bad thing. "It's not fair that Carl is having his childhood ripped away from him. It's not. But Lori, what would happen if it were you and Rick that were taken from him instead, God forbid? Wouldn't you want him to have the best chance possible?"

Lori was silent, contemplating this scenario.

"Hopefully, that will never happen." She said, finally.

"Of course! You know every single one of us would fight to stop that happening. He's the most precious member of the group, we all believe that, Lori."

Lori smiled at that, relaxing her defensive stance.

It was some miles later when the weight of the gun behind her became so irritating she couldn't leave it any longer. She wedged her hand between her back and the seat, pulling it from her waistband and throwing it on to the dashboard.

"Where did you get that?" Lori frowned, leaning forward to get a better look.

"Daryl made me take it." Was the only answer she gave, she did not feel like telling the other woman that she had used that particular weapon before.

"Boy, that man sure does wanna watch out for you." Lori let out a low whistle.

Carol blushed and chose to keep her eyes fixed on the road.

"I hope you're practising safe sex." Lori bit out, voice full of laughter.

Carol spluttered and put a hand to her chest. "What? I mean - we're not, it's not-"

"Oh come off it Carol, you aren't exactly quiet, you know." Lori let out a chuckle, hand plucking at a stray thread on her shirt.

"You _heard_?" Carol was pretty sure her face had turned purple with embarrassment. "Oh my god, this is mortifying."

"Oh come on, it's normal to have sex, Carol. You two have been hanging around each other long enough. And I only heard you last night. But I'm pretty sure I'm the only one, so don't worry." Lori watched Carol's horrified expression. "Really, it's not a big deal anyway, I'm sure he's excellent at it by the sounds you were making anyway."

"Lori! You are not helping here." This was absolutely humiliating. She could only hope to God that no-one else found out because she wasn't sure Daryl could handle the teasing if they did.

"He's clearly utterly in love with you."

"Absolutely not. Don't even go there. It's not like that."

"Oh he so is. He stayed with this group for you and only you, Carol. He's as close to nice as Daryl Dixon could ever get. I haven't even seen him throw a tantrum in weeks. This is your doing, whether you realise it or not."

Carol didn't quite know what to say to that one, so she said nothing at all, fixing her eyes back on the road.


	15. Chapter 15

Author's Note: Thank you for your reviews, reads, tumbl's and tweets. I appreciate and read every last one.

TWDTWDTWD

By the time the sun began to set, it also began to rain. Daryl rode through it until they pulled to a stop in the fading light, right on the side of the road. They hardly ventured onto the highways, sticking to the smaller roads where there were only the odd Walker stumbling about. Most of the time they just drove straight past, occasionally stopping if they were close enough to take out with relative ease.

Lori finally left her at the end of the day and after her initial rant over her and Rick's conflicting views on how to raise Carl, Carol found herself enjoying the time with her friend. They had a lot to say to each other, it felt like she hadn't seen the woman for weeks. It was nice to laugh about things of no great importance. She adored Daryl's company, but they could spend hours without talking. Idly chit chat was not something Daryl Dixon would ever engage in and for that, she was grateful. She spent far too much time with the man to have him irritate her with boring conversations. Still, it was nice to talk nonsense with Lori, gossiping about everything and nothing.

She was glad to see him that evening though. He rode the bike up the makeshift ramp stored in the truck and the vehicle rattled as he strapped it down securely. They weren't going to bother with tents for the night. It was too dark, too wet and too cold.

There was a small space behind the truck's bench, where Carol assumed it's last owner would've squeezed themselves into to sleep more comfortably at night. However, she and Daryl would have to make do with the bench because the space was filled with their things, including Daryl's crossbow and ever-expanding collection of knives. She reached over to hunt for something to eat - left over rabbit, some cold rice mixed with sweetcorn and a couple of candy bars and some dry clothes. Hers weren't too bad - she only stepped out into the rain briefly to relieve herself and only her pants really needed changing if she left her coat dry out.

He barrelled into the truck, slamming the door and shaking his head like a dog.

"Hey! I just got dry here." She moaned lightly, throwing his fresh clothes in his direction. Daryl took them without a word, shrugging off his wet things and pulling on the dry ones as Carol busied herself with getting their food ready.

"How many hours are we stopping for?" She asked him, after a few mouthfuls of rice, handing him the plastic container so he could have his fill.

"Six hours, max." He told her, barely stopping to take a breath between mouthfuls. He swallowed and took a sip from his bottle of water. "I'm ridin' in here tomorrow an' Lori ain't welcome."

She looked at him from the corner of her eye and bit her lip to hold in the smile that was threatening to quirk her mouth. "That so?"

"Damn straight. It's my fuckin' truck." He finished the last of his food quickly, passing the remains of the rice to finish for herself.

"That's true, it is _your _truck." Her tone was playful, lightly mocking and he picked up on it, turning to give her a glare as he rooted around the back for the blankets. "I think Lori said all she needed to say anyway."

"Too much as usual, I'll bet." He muttered, tossing the sleeping bag onto the bench, pushing his crossbow aside to get to the extra blankets. Carol knew they would be needed, she'd pulled on two sweaters but she was still freezing.

Carol would not admit it to him, but she had missed his presence that day. More than she thought. She hadn't realised it until he came back to her and judging by his tone, she suspected maybe he missed her a little bit too. She tucked the plastic boxes back into their bag, pushing them behind her before choosing her blanket to wrap around herself, trying to settle herself against the door.

"You ain't even gonna get a lick of sleep like that, ya know." He told her, pulling a cushion from the back. "Get over here, woman."

He pulled her over by her arm before she could even sit up properly, dragging her across the bench and over his lap. He wedged her between the driver's side door and his own body, pushing the pillow behind her for comfort. Her thighs rested on top of his, legs lounging across the bench. He dragged the sleeping bag over them and unzipping it, jamming the edges tight around them.

"You just going to sit upright all night?" She asked, because she couldn't see how he was going to be comfortable without anything to rest his head against.

He just snorted dismissively, shifting himself slightly and leaning himself down onto her, resting his head right on her breasts. Carol let out a snort as he made himself comfortable.

"Really? That's your master plan?" His head bobbed up and down as she laughed and the sight of him made her chuckle even harder.

"It's fuckin' genius. You've got the best fuckin' tits, comfortable as fuck. Now shut up an' go to sleep, or else I'll be tryin' to find out the best way to fuck you in this cab." He told her firmly and she quieted her laugh, bring her arm up to his hair, tangling her fingers up in it. That was a compliment wrapped up in expletives and she thought it were better than any boring old nicety. She wondered if this position was a little too similar to comforting a baby. Except she was pretty sure a baby didn't slide their hand up four layers of clothing to rest their hand on her bare breast, fingers rubbing against her skin. And she was pretty sure that it was definitely a grown man, not a baby, who's hardness pressed against her thigh and drove her close to breaking her resolve to not have sex in the truck. It was only the thought of him driving on so very little sleep and the chance of the two cars by the side of them finding their windows steamed up that stopped her.

She woke up with a start only a couple of hours later. The drizzling rain had turned heavy and hammered on the roof and she was pretty sure it was a sheet of lightening that woke her. She had slipped from her position against the door, lying flat against the bench and Daryl was virtually atop her, face still pressed against her breasts. There was a low, distant rumble of thunder and she jumped slightly, stirring Daryl. His fingers flexed against her hip and he lifted his head up to look at her.

"You a'right?" He asked groggily.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Storm just gave me a fright." She pulled the blanket up a little higher, trying to settle herself down again.

"It'll pass. Anyway, in here's the safest place t'be." He pulled his head up to meet her, pushing his mouth onto her's and she let him kiss her, melting into the bench as he pressed himself down onto her.

Daryl hadn't intended on trying to fuck her in the truck. Not that he didn't want to, because he was pretty sure he always wanted to have sex with Carol, but he knew the idea made her a little uncomfortable. Not when the others were so close. He forgot that despite what she was like behind closed doors - the temptress that was out to kill him - she was a fairly modest woman who didn't like to flaunt herself. And that thought made him even hotter.

She was receptive to his kiss though, spreading her thighs so he could straddle her leg properly, hands wrapping around his back to pull him closer to her. He had his hand on her waistband, ready to slide his hand underneath when he first heard the groaning.

At first he almost mistook it for her, combined with the pounding rain it was a muffled sound. He pulled his mouth away from her slowly, lifting his head to look out the window but despite squinting, it was pitch black out there.

He heard it again. Low and unmistakeable. He sat up sharply, pushing himself from her and she looked at him, confused.

"Wha-?" His hand muffled her mouth before she could even get out the first word and he tried to listen through the hammering rain to hear the noise again. It was close.

"We got Walkers." He murmured and he reached into the back of the cab for his jacket and his weapons.

"Let's just drive away." She told him, pulling at his shirt.

"Naw, it'll be easy." He stuffed the gun into his waistband, rooting for his buck knife. Just as he made to open the door, there was another groan, louder and closer and the truck rocked suddenly as the rotting body of a Walker forced its self against the passenger window, mutilated face pressed against the glass as it tried to get at them. Carol let out a cry in fear, jumping back and Daryl reached out a hand, pulling her back towards the driver's side.

"Fuck." He muttered, finally getting the buck knife in his grip. He leant over the trembling Carol to flick the truck's headlamp on and he could instantly see someone stirring in the shadows of Rick's car. He could also see the the three Walkers approaching them, limping down the road.

"Stay in the car." He ordered, sliding past her to jump out of the driver's side and she didn't even have a chance to pull her eyes from the snarling and snapping Walker that hammered on the glass and protest before he slammed the door behind him. It didn't even notice him sidling up to it, so focused on trying to get into the car to take a bite of Carol and she watched as Daryl slammed his knife into it's skull, blood smearing along the window pane as it slid to the floor.

Daryl pulled his knife free and instead of opening the door to the truck like she expected, he walked to the front and it was then she spotted the other Walkers up ahead. Her breath hitched in her throat as she saw him stride up to them, talking the first one out with ease. Rick, Glenn and T-Dog had mobilised themselves and followed, weilding bats and knives. But there wasn't just three.

There were at least three more coming from behind the truck and they lumbered passed the window without so much as a passing glance at Carol, focused solely on the men in front of them. She craned her head to look out the rearview mirror and she saw one more, a female in a ragged dress, it's scalp half-flapping from it's skull in the wind. Despite the rain, she groans were loud, ringing in her ears. Lightening flashed and as if by magic, the thing was pressed against the window, fists pounding the glass, broken jaw mashing at the screen.

Carol did not scream this time. She looked out the front window and she could see the other men were busy with their own troubles. It might be too late before they spotted this Walker on the truck. Her gun was on the dash of the car still, but she knew better than to fire it, there were already 7 or 8 about, probably more, especially if they heard the noise. She scrabbled in the cab behind her, hands falling on Daryl's leather roll, filled with knives, she pulled the first one free and she knew then that she would deal with this one herself. Her first Walker.

She rolled the window down some and immediately the Walker pressed its fingers into the gap. As it widened it replaced it's hands with its face, rotten skin pulling from the bone as it tried to force its head through the too small gap. The smell made her recoil. She had almost forgotten, it had been so long. It took a second for her to remember what she had to do but she managed to throw her full weight into the knife, landing right into the eyeball of the Walker with a squelch. The weight of the Walker as it fell almost took the knife from her grip, she had to brace her foot against the door to keep hold of it as it fell away from the rotting flesh. She rolled the window up quickly and turned away from the window, looking for Daryl and the others.

All she could see were bodies. There was noone standing and she felt the cry form in the back of her throat, the door opened quickly, sending her jumping back in the other direction.

Her heart leapt when she saw it was him, drenched but whole. He threw his weapons to the floor of the passenger side of the truck and kicked the engine up, without even looking at her. Carol realised the was still holding the knife and she dropped it to the floor with his, drawing her knees to her chest on the bench.

He squealed onto the road, Glenn and Rick close behind him, flooring it as fast as he thought he could get away with in the incliment weather. He had seen what she had done. He felt an inexplicable rage that she had taken such a risk when he was just a few seconds away from taking the Walker down himself. But it was a rage tinged with pride, because he was pretty certain she had never killed a Walker before, at least not as long as he had known her.

"You ok?" He managed to choke out, tearing his eyes from the road briefly to take in her hunched form.

She nodded. "You?" She shuffled a little closer, but still inches from touching him and he reached out to touch her knee.

"'m fine." He would argue with her another time, he decided, upon touching her and feeling her trembling. Lightening flashed across the sky and he pulled the blanket that was underneath him over her and she took it gratefully.

Carol pressed her face into the blanket, trying to collect herself. She had killed her first Walker. It wasn't her first kill, but it was her first Walker.


	16. Chapter 16

Author's Note: Thank you for the reads/reviews. Find me on Tumblr/Twitter under SepticLovebite.

TWDTWDTWD

They didn't stop for twenty miles. It was only when Rick's car needed gas that they pulled over and the thunderstorm raged on. The wind had picked up, causing the truck to rattle, forcing the convoy to slower speeds to stay straight on the road.

Carol had always hated thunderstorms, even as a little girl. There was something so eery about the darkness that got lit up for just a flash of a second. The way the sky seemed to roar in her ears. She always used to run to her parent's bedroom as a little girl, seeking comfort. When she had her own little girl, she was grateful for her, comforting her daughter helped her cope with her own fear.

Now, it was a thousand times worse. Daryl had left her in the truck alone whilst he topped up the gas tank, before jogging over to Rick and Glenn to discuss the next step for the group. She could barely make out his figure even in the glow of the headlamps, the rain was lashing so hard.

She pulled the blankets around her tighter, building herself a cocoon and she sat on the edge of the truck bench until he came running back to the car, soaked to the skin. She immediately threw the blankets off herself to rifle in the back of the truck, looking for something for him to change into for the second time that night.

"Stop fussin', it's just a little rain." He snapped at her, pulling her back round. He didn't mean to lose his temper, but he was tired and cold, despite what he told her. It never got easier being so harshly ripped from peace and thrown into back into the thick of things. It didn't help that Carol hadn't stopped trembling since she woke up and he hated seeing her like that. It made him feel like crap, like he wasn't doing enough for her. Truth was, he wasn't doing enough for her, because if he was, she wouldn't have had to take out that Walker. Just like she shouldn't have had to kill Andrew.

"You'll get sick if you stay in the those things." She whispered, tugging her wrist free to go back to her searching. "Are we staying here?"

He nodded wearily, pushing the lock down on the door and shoving the shotgun onto the dashboard. Carol handed him the dry clothes and he reluctantly took them from her. There didn't seem much point. He wouldn't sleep again now, he was too wired up and he wouldn't risk it while they were out in the open, exposed. He had wanted to move on, but the weather made driving difficult and Rick insisted they stop for a few more hours rest, lest someone fall asleep at the wheel.

He changed quickly, pulling his boots back on and putting his coat on the dashboard, just in case.

"Come on, try t'get back to sleep." He told her, gesturing for her to rest against him. She gave him a look that suggested she knew that he didn't intend to sleep and she wasn't happy about it, but he pulled his eyes from her, so he could avoid the talking to he really didn't want to hear at that moment.

He pulled her to him, pushing her down to rest against his thigh, but she resisted.

"You have to rest too." She told him, voice almost too soft to be heard against the pounding rain.

"'m fine." He told her firmly, leaving no room for argument. "I had enough earlier."

She just sighed, dragging the sleeping bag over to him so that if he wouldn't sleep, he would at least be warm. She settled herself to lie down on the bench, dragging the blankets over herself tight, tucking her head against his thigh. He didn't look down to her at all, eyes fixed on the darkness ahead. He didn't touch her, one arm resting on the door of the truck, the other at his mouth, teeth chewing at his fingernails.

"Daryl."

He looked down at her, her eyes wide, pulling his hand from his mouth. Carol made to say something but he turned away from her. "Stop ya fuckin' fussin', Christ." He huffed out and he could feel her recoil against his leg. "Aw, fuck, don't-" Carol sat up, hurt and pulled away towards the door. She didn't say anything to him, turning her back to him, curling herself up against the window of the passenger side, feet tucked under her.

Daryl let out a sigh and rubbed his hands over his face. "Carol, fuck, it's just-"

"I'm trying to sleep." She told him acidly, throwing him a look over her shoulder and turning back into her blankets.

Daryl felt his rage build and he wanted to storm out of the truck, except he couldn't leave her, despite wanting to. He settled for slamming his fist against the steering wheel and he tried to pretend he didn't see her visibly jump. "Fine, fuck you then." He muttered churlishly. She didn't respond.

Carol didn't sleep, even though she tried. The door was not a comfy spot and she wished she hadn't pulled away from Daryl, if only to get a little rest. It didn't help that she could hear him awake behind her, sighing occassionally, fingers drumming along the steering wheel. She didn't understand what put him in such a foul mood and what she did to deserve it. They got out safe, no-one got bit and the only damage was a few wet clothes. If anything, Carol felt she deserved at least a "well done". She killed her first Walker. She took control of her own protection. She didn't know if Daryl knew that she'd never killed a Walker before tonight, but he must have had a clue. She'd been around him long enough.

She tried to push the thought from her head, but she couldn't help but think that maybe Daryl had grown tired of her. She wondered how could she have thought earlier in the evening that he might have missed her? She had tried not to burden him. Not anymore than she had before they'd started sleeping together, anyhow. She tried to give him space if she could, but he never seemed to need it. He chose to share her bed, aside from the morning after Andrew attacked her, she had never asked him to stay.

By the time light had started to come, the thunder and lightening had stopped, although the rain and the wind were relentless. She jolted upright when the truck's engine roared to life and Carol realised that she must have slept, if only for a few minutes. Daryl definitely hadn't, she could tell just by the quick glance that she managed to give him. His hair was standing on end, as if his hands had been running through it all night and he had dark rings around his eyes.

Carol would apologise. Even though she didn't know what she had done wrong, if anything at all. It would be easy, she had apologised for things that weren't her fault thousands of times in her life, just to keep the peace. She would have to. She did not want to cause upset within the group. It was bad enough that Lori and Rick were constantly at each other's throats. If Daryl wanted her to swap places with someone else in the truck, she would, no matter how much it would hurt.

He fidgeted at he followed the other cars, hand going from his mouth to the gear stick, to beating a rhythm on his thigh and fiddling with the gun tucked into his waistband. He could feel her occassional glance at him and he tried not to look back at her. His temper was still short and it made him even worse knowing that it was being unleashed on the last person he ever wanted to rage at. He was only angry with himself.

"I-" Carol physically turned to face him, starting to speak to him but not knowing how to word it. "If, if you would prefer me to go in Rick's car, I'll swap the next time we pull over." Her voice was small, soft. Trying to please him. As if she were frightened of him. It made him feel sick. He _frightened_ her.

"What?" He pulled his eyes from the road, shaking his head with disbelief.

"I'm sorry, whatever I did -" She pushed the blankets from herself, scooting closer to him.

"What the fuck are ya goin' on 'bout?" Daryl couldn't believe his ears. He had been the one losing his temper at her and she was apologising to _him_? "You ain't fuckin' done anythin'!"

She didn't seem to know what to say to that.

"You ain't done shit." He repeated, hand going to his eyes.

"Then, why are you so -" She began to ask, stopping herself from using a word that might provoke him even further.

Daryl reached out to grab her hand and groaned when she froze under his touch. "You shouldn't haveta have killed that Walker." He wrapped his fingers around her fist and she finally relaxed under his touch.

"I did what I had to do! I'm glad I did it too. I've done worse, Daryl." She told him, winding her fingers through his. She saw where he was going with this now. She understood. He thought he failed her.

"And ya shouldn't have had to do that neither!" He squeezed her fingers tight as he spoke, teeth gritted as he spat out the words. "I can't fuckin' protect you. I'm failin' you, just like I fuckin' failed Sophia!" The words were like a knife in his heart, but they were true. He couldn't rescue that little girl, just like he hadn't been able to rescue Carol from Andrew or from last night's Walker.

Carol bristled. "Pull over." She ordered.

"I can't." He threw his hand out to gesture to the cars in the front of their convoy.

"Just pull the damned truck over, Daryl." Her voice was steely, her gaze burning.

He sighed and slammed the brakes on, twisting the wheel to pull the car over some. He wondered if she was about to storm out of the cab and he watched to see if Glenn noticed he was no longer following them.

"Daryl." Carol yanked his hand, jerking his attention to her. "Sophia's death is not your cross to bear. You did everything for her, more than anyone, including me. It could've been anyone of us that got separated that day on the highway. Anyone of us that got bit. Plenty of better-equipped people have died. There's only so much we can do. Sophia is at peace. She's safe now." She could feel the tears welling up and she swallowed, forcing them back. She looked up and she could see the cars ahead and stopped, Glenn was reversing back to meet them.

"I'm not...I want to live. I want to be here as long as I can. So I am trying. I'm never going to be toting a gun around like I was born with it in my hand. But I'm going to try. I promised you I would. And as for Andrew...honestly? Killing him was easy." Daryl jerked his head up at her admission, surprise etched on his features. She nodded her head to reiterate her words. "It was a choice between Beth and I or him. It was easy. I will do it again, if I have to."

She could see Glenn jogging over to Daryl's side of the truck and Daryl pulled his gaze from her to roll down his window.

"Everything alright, man?" Glenn's brows were drawn together, confusion on his face.

"'S fine. Give us a minute, we'll get goin' again."

Glenn stepped back, turning towards his car. "You sure?" He asked hesitantly.

Daryl just nodded and Carol gave the younger man a soft smile to reassure him. Glenn nodded and jogged back to the car, waving to Rick.

"Don't carry the guilt with you." She told him as he turned the engine back on and he just nodded at her as he pulled the car back onto the road. She pushed herself right up into his side now, his hand had pulled away from hers to use the gear stick, but he was receptive to her touch, allowing her to curl her hand around his thigh, her shoulder pressed against his. She turned her head to his, pressing a kiss against his cheek. She didn't see it, but she felt his cheek lift under her lips and she knew he was smiling.

TWDTWDTWD

It was another night spent along the side of the road. The rain had stopped, so they ate together outside, although they did not risk building a fire, just in case they attracted unwanted attention. He had handed her her gun when she stepped out of the truck and she tucked it into her waistband. She didn't want it, but she would take it. And she would use it if she had to. Daryl had been at the truck whilst Carol prepared dinner as best as she and Lori could and she knew he was moving things about, although she couldn't see him from her spot against, Rick's car, which was shielding her from the wind.

By the time the light started to fade, they were all dead on their feet. Carol suspected that she and Daryl were not the only ones to stay awake all night, judging by the dark rings around several of the group's eyes.

She bid everyone good night and followed Daryl into the truck. He opened the door and she saw that he had pulled one side of the bench forward to expose the sleeping area of the cab. It had been emptied of their things and she could see them on the floor of passenger side of the truck.

She just smiled it him as she stepped onto the running board and she sat on the edge of the bench to pull off her coat and boots before squeezing herself into the little sleeping space. She crawled up to the top end of it, where Daryl had put their only pillow and pulled the gun from her waistband, tucking it under the pillow.

He followed her lead, unlacing his boots and throwing his jacket onto the dashboard before slamming the door shut, checking the locks. It would be an extremely tight squeeze with the two of them. They wouldn't both be able to sleep on their backs. But clearly that wasn't Daryl's intention anyway because he settled himself right over her, propping himself up on his elbows so that she wasn't crushed by his weight.

Carol wrapped her arms around his back as he pressed his mouth to hers, letting him push her lips apart, his tongue darted into her mouth. It was a lazy kiss, but she responded just as slowly, she could see his eyes were heavy, he was in desperate need of sleep, just as she was. He was grinding himself into her and her body involuntarily responded, hips arching into him and she could feel him growing hard against her. He pushed her shirt and camisole up with one hand, exposing her stomach and sliding his hand over her breast. His mouth trailed down her jaw, kissing and suckling her neck before his lips skimmed her collar bones, finally stopping at her breast. He took her nipple in his mouth, running his tongue over the hard nub, nipping lightly with his teeth. Carol shivered and moaned under his weight, one hand clenching the blanket underneath her in pleasure.

He stayed there for a little while but could feel his pace getting slower. She thought he was practically dropping off to sleep and he fondled her and she cupped his jaw, pulling him up to her face.

"You can't even keep your eyes open." She chuckled at him, stroking his chin with her thumb.

"'m fine." He mumbled at her, but his eyes were half shut, hands fumbling.

"Sleep." She told him, lifting herself up to reach for the edge of the sleeping bag to zip it around them. Daryl didn't protest as she tucked it up tight and he turned her around so her back was pressed up against his chest and he pressed his hand to her crotch, pushing her back onto his hard dick and she gasped at the sudden action, sending a small tremble of pleasure into her core.

"That's not fair." She moaned and he smirked against her neck, curling his fingers into the fabric of her pants a little tighter.

"You were the one who said no fuckin' in the truck." He whispered into her skin and she sighed at her own stupid rule.

"If I wasn't so tired, that rule would be out the window." She sighed, pulling his hand from her pants to rest on her waist instead. She was sure he mumbled something in response, but she was so close to sleep she didn't hear it.


	17. Chapter 17

Author's Notes: Thank you, thank you, thank you.

TWDTWDTWD

Carol's one rule for being in the truck was broken within three minutes of waking up. It was still dark, but then they had gone to bed by sundown, so it wasn't surprising that Daryl was up in what seemed like the middle of the night. He'd been awake for a little while and she had tried to ignore him as he attempted to prod her awake slowly. First it was just shifting his position, wrapping his arms tight around her, burying his head into the crook of her neck. When that didn't illicit the desired response, he switched to sliding his hands under her clothes and gently rubbing her cool skin with his warm fingertips. She stirred slightly, but her eyes stayed shut.

After a few moments, she felt him pull away from her, hearing him root around in one of their bags, although she wasn't sure what for. He returned a moment later, tugging the sleeping bag from her to press himself on top of her and without warning he tugged her pants down over her hips, running his hand between her thighs. The feel of his fingers probing her centre was enough for her to take in a sharp breath, eyes snapping open.

She arched against his fingers, lifting almost her entire body to him and he let a smile quirk his lips as he watched her come undone underneath him. He decided that pleasuring her was actually better than sex. He didn't think he would ever believe that, but it was true. It was far more satisifying to watch her losing herself over something he had done to her than it was to get his own rocks off. Not that he didn't enjoy that part. Because that was pretty much his second favourite thing to do. She always seemed so surprised whenever he did put his hands on her, like she was fucking grateful. Truth was, he was fucking thankful he was even allowed to put his hands on her at all.

She was clutching at him now, nails biting into his biceps, as she moaned and panted and it didn't take much for her to come underneath him, stiffening up and letting out a silent scream as he pressed onto her clit, throbbing around his fingers. He gave her a moment to get her breath back and she fumbled for the button of his jeans. She only got them down his thighs and he pushed her hands aside to roll the condom he'd retrieved on. There was no ceremony as he pushed himself into her, it was just fucking, pure and simple. There was no room to do more than thrust, her pants were wedged just under her knees, leaving just enough room for him.

She clutched at his neck and he laughed as she yanked his neck down to her, not even managing to press her lips to his, just pulling at him mindlessly as she bucked under him, hips coming up from the truck bed to crash into his. It was all of five minutes, when he felt the pressure building and he came inside her. She pushed her hand between them, pressing her fingers to herself to finish herself off whilst he was still inside her. He slammed his mouth on hers and pulled her hand away, pushing his own fingers there instead. He didn't want her to have to do it for herself. She bit his lip as she came, so hard he hissed into her mouth and he was sure she drew blood.

She gaped at him when she finally opened her eyes, pressing her hand to his mouth, a drop of blood marking her skin.

"Sorry." She huffed out. Daryl just shook his head and lifted himself from her, pressing one final kiss to her mouth before rolling the condom off and hitching his pants up. It was starting to get lighter and he was pretty sure he heard a car door slam somewhere.

He extended one hand to her, pulling her up so she could button her own pants, sliding over the truck bench to see what was going on with the others. He could see Rick and Lori were up and he pulled out his crossbow to join them. Carol was flushed looking and he threw her boots and coat over to her before lacing up his own.

"Try to look less like ya just got fucked." He murmured to her and she just smiled as he slammed the door behind him.

Rick had spread the maps on the bonnet of the car and he gave Daryl a nod as he approached.

"What happened to you?" Rick nodded his mouth and Daryl pressed a hand to his lips, wiping away any traces of blood. So much for Carol being the one that looking like she got fucked.

"'S nothin'."

Rick just raised an eyebrow and looked up at the truck, where Carol was stepping out and he took note of the steamed up windows. Daryl followed his gaze.

"Shut up." He barked at Rick and the other man just grinned. "We gonna plan this route or what?"

TWDTWDTWD

Carol had decided she hated Missouri. It seemed to take forever to get through it, blocked roads that took hours to shift only for them to have to turn around to avoid hordes of Walkers or to come across a collapsed bridge and have to take a route that was fifty miles out of their way. She was starting to feel like Missouri was one giant maze that they would remain in for all of eternity. It didn't help that they were sleeping on the side of the road and that they were back to eating from tins and stinking to high heaven. The weather had picked up again, oddly, so days spent in the truck were hot and sticky and temperatures plunged at night, below freezing, she was sure because not even a heady combination of Daryl and layers of blankets could keep her warm. She never used to think of herself as a particularly irritable person, but now she was distinctly crotchety.

Supplies were running low and they chose an empty house to hole up in for the day, right next to a river so the clothes could be cleaned whilst Maggie, Glenn, T-Dog and Rick made the run into the nearest town a few miles away. Daryl was about somewhere, she could ocassionally make out his shape in the distance. He was keeping watch on the wider area, hunting as he went. Every so often he would reappear in her eyeline, game bouncing from his belt.

Beth and Carl had been ordered to scour the house for anything of use. Everything from a tube of toothpaste to hand sanitizer to the batteries from a television remote, everything was to be brought to the kitchen table, ready for the rest of the group to sift through and slot into their existing supplies.

Hershel was in the garden, shot gun in hand, apparantly keeping watch on Carol and Lori as they scrubbed the everlasting pile of clothes at the river side, but he was busy rummaging in the garden shed, making noises of appreciation when he found something that might be of use to them.

It was when the clothes were blowing in the wind, almost dry by Carol's watch, that Daryl returned. He had a small string of game, a considerable find considering there was very little in the way of forestry.

"They back yet?" He asked them by way of greeting, as Lori and Carol both sat on kitchen chairs they dragged to the patio, enjoying a little of the late afternoon sun.

"No, somethin' botherin' you?" Lori asked, sitting up a little straighter.

He shrugged off the string of animals and flicked his hair out of his eyes.

"Nah, not really. Got some tyre tracks up in the dirt track, not even a mile up a ways, they ain't more'n coupla days old. Not if it's been rainin' up here too." He looked to Hershel who reappeared from the shed, clutching his shotgun in one hand, a saw in another. "Probably only passin' through."

"Three miles off a main road?" Lori questioned, standing up.

Daryl took a step back from her, turning towards the house. "There ain't no-one 'bout now." He responded, a little defensive, Carol noted. "And we wait until the others get back, see what they gotta say. Just don't go gettin' too comfortable."

"Any Walkers?" Hershel asked.

"Just a couple, they ain't our problem. Just keep ready to go."

Carol nodded and watched him as he stomped into the house looking for somewhere to clean his kills.

"Come on." Carol gave Lori a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Let's go see what those kids are up to."

The others returned soon after, with very little. Just one backpack of odds and ends, retrieved from a couple of abandoned houses. Enough to stretch to one meal, maybe two when combined with Daryl's meat.

They sat or stood around the small kitchen, resting on counters or sitting at the table as Rick spoke of their findings.

"No Walkers. Not one. Even in the centre of town. Lotsa bodies but nothing else. Every store, absolutely picked clean. Not looted. Like someone literally went in there with a moving truck. We checked the houses in the immediate area, same story. What we found was in the houses nearest here." Rick sat hunched at the table and Carol could see by his face and the faces of the other three, that there was more than that.

"We think there's a survivor's camp." Glenn blurted out. Rick and Maggie both shot him a look. "I couldn't hold it in!" He shrugged.

"A camp?"

"There were these over the town." Rick pulled a folded up wad of paper from his pocket and prised the three sheets of paper apart. Lori, Daryl and Hershel all went for them at the same time and she looked over Lori's shoulder to read the words.

_There is hope. Camp Sheldon is 3.6 miles North East of Aullville. We have food, shelter and safety. We have medical staff. We can protect you. We live within a twelve foot walled community, with constant protection. There is no need for weapons here. On your approach to our home, please hand over all arms and supplies. We are a utopian society. Safe journey._

Lori was the first to finish the words and her head snapped up to Rick. "We have to go."

"I ain't goin'." Daryl threw the paper down with as much force as one could with a piece of paper, pulling himself from the crowd around the table, back against the counter.

"What? Are you insane? It's safe there." Lori turned in her seat to look at Daryl.

"I ain't fuckin' goin'!" He told her. "Have ya even read the fuckin' paper? That ain't government or army or some shit!"

"How do you even know?" Lori asked scornfully. "Anything would be better than driving around aimlessly with nothing ahead of us!"

"You gonna put your life in the hands of some strangers who want all our weapons? I had ya pegged for alotta things Lori, but dumb bitch weren't one of 'em!"

"Hey!" Rick and Carol spoke the warning at the same time and Rick shoved the chair back, raising a hand in Daryl's direction. "Cool it." He told him. "All of you. No-one is suggesting we walk in there and hand over our guns. And I agree, Daryl. I don't think this is an authority either. But we are aimless. Yeah, we're heading to Nebraska but we don't know what's in store for us. It's worth considering."

Daryl shook his head and mumbled a string of expletives under his breath. "I ain't considerin' shit." With that he picked up his crossbow and stormed from the room and a few seconds later they heard one of the doors upstairs slam shut.

Eyes fell to Carol expectantly and she just shrugged. "I'll talk to him. I don't think he'll change his mind."

"I want to go, Rick." Lori told him firmly.

"We're not just walking in there. I thought maybe, if everyone were in agreement, we could scope out the area, see what's what. Take it slow." Hershel nodded his agreement and this seemed to fortify Rick. "Just take a look. It stands to reason, not every living person left in this world is out to kill the others. There must be more like us."

Carol sighed and rubbed her hands over her face. She already knew that this issue would drive a wedge between the group and force her to make choices she didn't want to make.

"Are we staying here tonight?" She asked tiredly.

"I think so." Carol stood up at his words.

"I'll go talk to him. Do you mind getting started on dinner without me?" She asked Lori and the other woman nodded.

"I'll help." Beth piped up and Carol squeezed her shoulder in thanks before leaving to find Daryl.

TWDTWDTWD

She could hear the squeal of metal scraping against metal as she made her way up the stairs and she knew he was sharpening his knives. She pushed the door open to see him hunched over a vanity, in what was probably the master bedroom, the pots and potions swept onto the floor beside him, in anger most likely. His knife roll was laying half empty on the bed and he looked up into the mirror to see her watching him, arms folded as she stood by the door.

"I guess you're here to make me change my mind." He bit out bitterly.

She didn't say anything as she crossed the room, sitting just behind his right shoulder. He carried on sharpening the knife viciously and she tried not to wince as the sound shook her eardrums.

"It's a stupid fuckin' idea. Rick's a fuckin' cop, he thinks too highly of authority. I know how it fuckin' goes." He muttered. To her or to himself she wasn't sure. He turned around sharply to face her, knife in hand. "People are sick assholes. We shouldn't trust no-one. Especially not people who want our weapons the minute we stroll in." He waved his hand at her and she just looked down at the knife that was way too close to her face.

"Shit." Daryl dropped the knife onto the vanity as if it burnt him. "Sorry." He mumbled. "So ya wanna go?"

"No." She whispered.

His head shot up at that, an answer he clearly wasn't expecting.

"I told you I trust you. Still stands. If you say no, then I say no too."

He turned around on the stool to face her properly. His rubbed his hands on his thighs nervously. "Serious?"

She nodded once, firm.

"It ain't right Carol. They gotta be huge, t' be able to clear out a whole town of Walkers. Take all that's there. Ten of us would be nothin' on them."

"Then talk to Rick, tell him your concerns. And maybe try not call his wife a dumb bitch?" She offered with a tilt of her head, her mouth almost quirking into a smile.

"She is." He muttered churlishly, sitting forward so their knees were touching.

"Come on. She's my friend, Daryl."

He made a noise that might have been an agreement, although Carol couldn't be sure. She smiled before standing up and he caught her hand in his. She waited for him to say something but there was nothing for him to say, so he pressed a kiss to her knuckles before getting up and heading down the stairs with her.


	18. Chapter 18

Author's Note: Thanks for the reads/reviews. Wow, some of you sure do hate Lori, huh? Can't say she bothers me all that much, but every story needs an antagonist! Hope this new development pans out...

TWDTWDTWD

Daryl had agreed to scout the area with Rick. He was still absolutely resolute in his opinion that Camp Sheldon was a bad idea and would not be swayed by anyone else's thoughts on the matter.

Lori was just as stubborn. Carol completely understood why. Not only did she have a young son to protect, but a child on the way. Pregnancy and giving birth were scary and complicated enough as it was, to go through it without medical care was absolutely terrifying. Carol was sure, that if it were her that was pregnant, she would feel exactly the same way. And she was sure Daryl would be considering it too.

Her head jerked at the thought that seemed to pop into her head from nowhere. Pregnant, with Daryl's child. The picture of it made her blush. It was ridiculous. She was 40. 41? She didn't know the date, but she thought maybe her 41st birthday had passed by silently. She wasn't entirely sure how old Daryl was. Younger than her, she was certain. But by less than she first assumed. Maybe five years or so. It wasn't impossible for her to have more children by any means, but she had struggled with Sophia. She had vowed there would be no more. Her body couldn't take it, nor her mind. Bringing a child in this world intentionally, even with a man different to Ed, would be inconceivable.

It was a ridiculous thought anyway, regardless of her health or the world they lived in. She was sleeping with a man could barely be seen to be touching her in front of someone else. It didn't bother her, per se, because really, what did titles like boyfriend and girlfriend really matter anymore? She figured he'd be the type to be like that no matter what the scenario. All that mattered was that he was going and he was taking her with him. But that didn't mean he would be the type to settle down with a woman and a baby.

"Hey. You ok?" Lori came to the kitchen, bearing the sewing kit and a handful of darning that had needed to be done for a few days, but they never stopped long enough to get to it. Everything was packed into the vehicles, ready to go at a moment's notice if they had to. Most of the others were sitting in the conservatory, keeping an eye out for Rick and Daryl, even though it would probably be hours before they returned.

As she sat at the kitchen table with Lori, mending a tear in yet another of Glenn's shirts, it hit her that these would be the last few hours with the woman she could call her closest friend. Chances are, they wouldn't see each other again. The thought made her tear up.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Lori put down her own darning and pushed her chair closer to Carol, resting a hand on her arm. Carol shook her head, choking back the cry.

"It's just...you've been with me since this started, I don't-don't know what I am going to do without you." She threw down the shirt in her hand and reached over to pull Lori into a hug, tears falling freely now and she could hear Lori sniffing against her shoulder and she knew the other woman was feeling the same way too.

"You're gonna be fine, Carol. Just fine. I know it." Lori murmured to her. "And you know, you can always come with us."

Carol shook her head sadly. "I can't. Not without Daryl."

Lori nodded, understanding. "You couldn't be with a better man. He'll take good care of you."

They fell against each other again, tears beginning again and it seemed to set the tone for the rest of the day.

When Daryl and Rick returned, she rubbed at her face, hoping that they wouldn't notice her her redrimmed eyes. No such luck.

"What's wrong?" Daryl asked, the moment he passed her in the doorway and he caught her arm as she turned away.

"I'm fine." She gave him a weak smile, pulling away to join the others in the conservatory to hear what had to be said.

"It's big. It's a cluster of buildings, some sort of government facility we think, but the map we have isn't all too clear on what it is. No signage that we could get close enough to find out. The wall though, is definitely a new addition. It's topped with a lot of barbed wire and four watch points. It's definitely well protected. You could have hundreds of people living there." Rick explained. "There's no way of knowing anymore until we're in there."

Daryl sighed and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Rick shot him a look and turned to look at the rest of them. "There doesn't seem any point in holding out any longer. Who ever wants to go, we can leave tomorrow. If you don't...then that's fine."

There was a collective slump within the group as the realisation that they would need to make a decision hit them.

"Daryl has already said he's not going, so we've decided that the best option, if things don't work out in Camp Sheldon, is to have a meeting point. He's going to prepare a route, a first stop off point and leave notes for his next destination if that one doesn't prove safe enough to stay. It's not a guarantee of a meet up, but the best we can probably do."

Daryl stood up to leave, because really, what else was there for him to do? Rick would no longer be making any decisions with him, so it was up to him where they were going to go next. They. Him and Carol. He didn't look at her as he picked his way through the group to get back to the kitchen, although from the corner of his eye, he could see her stand up and he felt a swell of pride in his chest. She had already said she was going with him, but there was that little bit of doubt in the back of his mind, especially when he walked in the door to see her red from crying and a glance at Lori had told him the other woman was similarly emotional.

She joined him at the table and he spread out the map. "Nebraska still good with you?" She nodded her affirmation.

"You gotta say if it ain't." He told her. "Don't just be agreein' with me."

"I'm not. North makes sense. It's colder, less populated." Carol tried to keep her voice steady and firm. She watched him making plans on the map and he was trying to familarise her with the route, but maps were never her strong point and she found it hard to even find the spot he was talking about once he lifted his finger from the paper.

"I've been huntin' up near Fort Robinson state park. Plenty of natural resources. Fish, game, lots of land. There's cabins and stuff already up there. Trouble is, it's on the west side of the state and eastern Nebraska is a lot busier. Lot more highways and stuff. Lincoln was probably their declared safe-zone, so we really gotta stay away from there. We could either travel up through Iowa, then go through the northern part of the state or we can push through north Kansas and then travel up."

Carol opened her mouth to respond but the kitchen door swung open and a tearful Maggie was being led in by Glenn, who pushed her into a kitchen chair and rubbed a hand over her shoulder.

"We're coming with you." He told them and this illicited a fresh sob from the younger girl.

"And Hershel and Beth?" Carol asked hesitantly. But she knew the answer, why else would Maggie be sitting with them crying if they were coming too?

"They're still deciding, but Hershel, he wants to go with Rick." Glenn hugged himself to Maggie and Carol felt her own tears welling at the sight of them.

"Oh Maggie." She sighed out. She got up to hug Maggie and Glenn moved out of the way to let her, visibly relieved at Carol taking over.

She guided the girl out the room, leaving the men to continue with their plans. She had a feeling that tonight would be a long night.

TWDTWDTWD

They were up at dawn. Maggie was still arguing with her father about his decision and she had a feeling the girl would continue arguing until her father walked in the Camp's doors. She and Daryl had already decided to go out first thing. They needed more fuel and Daryl had seen some cars that could prove to be fruitful whilst out scouting with Rick. He could've gone alone, would've preferred to even, but Carol did not want to be there when the Grimes family left nor to see the heart wrenching goodbyes of the Greene family, so she made her farewells early, doing her best not to sob her heart out as she hugged her friends for the last time.

Glenn and Maggie would wait at the house until they returned, they would take the truck, whilst Carol and Daryl would ride the bike until the other two obtained something of their own. T-Dog had eventually decided to go to Camp Sheldon, he was neither here nor there with his decision, but in the end he told Carol he was simply tired of running.

It was with a heavy heart that Daryl handed the details of their journey to Rick. Everything he had in him told him that this was a bad choice. He was certain Rick had doubts too, but the worry etched on his wife's face was enough to spur him on. There wasn't a whole lot of evidence of foul play at Camp Sheldon, but his gut told him different and he always, always trusted his gut. He was thankful to Rick, even if he couldn't find the words to voice it. Rick had trusted him when most people didn't.

He didn't look back as he and Carol drove off from the house and he told her not to. She'd stopped crying, rubbing her eyes furiously and he prised her hand from her cheek to take it in his own, squeezing her fingers tight. He didn't know how to comfort her, there was nothing he could to fix this, to make it better.

"They're gonna be fine." He whispered to her.

"You know you don't believe that." She choked out, but she didn't pull her hand away from him. It was true, he didn't believe that. But he thought she needed to, for her own sanity.

He was trying to think up a good response when he heard the gunshots. Four, all in quick succession. He slammed the brakes on and looked around, seeing if the source was in viewing distance. It wasn't. It was close though. They'd stopped on a bridge, one with a wall that mostly obscured the truck and he pulled up the shotgun to go look and see if the noise came from the road underneath. Carol took a sharp intake of breath as he opened the truck door, stepping onto a railing to get a good look over the bridge.

Immediately, he found the source. There were two vehicles, a shiny black jeep and a smaller beat up looking car. The front was ruined, smoke coming from under the hood. There were three men, all dressed similarly in what Daryl thought looked like SWAT gear. All carrying weapons. They were in the boot of the car, pulling out boxes and bags, throwing them into the jeep.

Looting? He couldn't be sure. Then he spotted the bodies on the ground. Two that he could see, one half slumped in the passenger seat, a girl he thought. The other face down on the ground, a man, dark hair and stocky in build. There was pool of blood around his head. There had been a stand off here. Once they finished loading the goods into the jeep, the all piled into the car, without so much at the backwards glance at the devastation they'd caused. He was betting he knew where the men came from. And they had to get back to warn Rick and the others before it was too late.

He was about to turn around to get back into the truck when he heard the cry. Slow at first, before picking up into a full blown wail. Carol heard it too and she scrambled from the truck to peer over the edge to seek the source. It was joined by second sound. Another cry, smaller than the other, frailer.

She knew what it was before he did. And why wouldn't she? She had experience with this sound.

"Oh my god." One hand flew to her mouth, the other pointing out to the car below. Clambering from the open door, sliding down on her belly with trembling hands and feet was a little girl, no more than two years old.

Carol felt the bile rise in her mouth as the wailing child toddled to the body of the man, hands pushing to try and move him as she sobbed. From the back window the car, Daryl could make out the shape of a baby carrier.

"Shit." Daryl breathed. He took a second to take in the scene. They had to warn Rick and the rest, they were due to leave at any moment and any second they delayed could mean the loss of their lives.

"We can't leave them." Carol moaned, as if she knew what he was thinking. "She just a baby."

He nodded once, plan forming in his mind. "We need to warn the others too." He pulled her and pushed her into the driver's seat. "Follow the road around, cut across the verge, try to hold steady as ya go down, I'm gonna unstrap the bike." She nodded and cranked the engine as he hoisted himself into the truck bed.

It took only moments, but it was a rough ride as the vehicle bounced down the slope off road as he tried to undo the rope securing the bike. Even over the noise of the engine and the wind whistling in his ears he could still hear the cries of the children.

The truck lurched to a stop and he slammed forward with it. She jumped out before cutting the engine off, darting across the road to the little girl, sitting in a pool of blood. He left the bike where it was, rushing over to help her and she scooped up the little one, ignoring the little fists beating at her arms in shock.

Carol turned to look in the car and there she saw the source of the quieter wailing, a cry that ceased the minute his eyes clocked Carol. A little boy, judging by the blue babygro, not more than 6 months by her eye, maybe even less. Daryl caught up with her as she yanked open the door and he immediately went to check the bodies of the adults. The man was definitely the father of these children. They all had the same shock of dark wavy hair and tan skin. Two shots, straight through the head. He still had a baseball bat in his hand. Stood no chance against three men wielding guns.

The mother was younger, late twenties maybe, mid brown hair. She hadn't even a chance to get out of her seat.

"Here." Carol passed him the little girl so she could unclip the belt from around the car seat of the baby. He'd never held a child before. Not one. She wailed in his face, blood splattered on her cheeks and the sight of her like that was enough to make him feel sick. A child should never have to endure what she had in the last few moments. He didn't know how to comfort her, how to hold her.

"Daryl!" She snapped him from his thoughts and he realised suddenly that he didn't have a clue what to do. "Get those bags, I think they're baby things." She ordered him as she finally pulled the baby seat free and he realised exactly what someone meant when they used the term maternal instinct. Carol's had kicked in instantly upon laying eyes on those kids.

He did as she asked and threw them into the truck bed with one hand and pushing the little girl into the cab of the truck straight after. He jumped onto the bed and pushed the running board down to get the bike off and she came running behind him, babyseat in one hand and the dead woman's purse in another.

"Do you remember the way back the house?" He asked over the roar of the engine.

"I think so." She huffed out, trying to plug in the seatbelt around the carseat.

"I have to go warn the others, see if I can find them on the road. You get to that house an' you stay there alright?" He told her and she nodded absently, focused on the children in front of her. "Carol!" He called out and she pulled out of the truck to look at him. "Don't you dare hesitate to use that gun if ya gotta." She nodded once more and with that he kicked up the stand and tore out of there.

The little boy was amazingly quiet. It was as if on seeing her, he knew he had been saved. He gurgled quietly, blowing spit bubbles as Carol pushed the belt into the clip. The little girl on the other hand, was not so easily content and Carol didn't blame her. Blood coated her little denim dress, hands and face too. She wished she could clean her up immediately, but there wasn't time. She got back into the cab a few moments after Daryl had left and realised that she didn't have a child seat for her but there was not time. If those men in the jeep had heard their engines, they could be back at any moment. She dragged the little girl to her lap as she got back onto the bridge, clutching her to her chest and stroking her hair as she tried to navigate the truck with one hand, murmuring words of comfort.

For the first time in what seemed like forever, she prayed to God. She hadn't since Sophia died. She silently prayed that everyone she loved would make it back safe.


	19. Chapter 19

Author's Note: Thank you. It's all rather domesicated in here right now, and for that I am sorry. Gotta be done.

TWDTWDTWD

The little girl's cries had dulled to soft sobbing by the time Carol made it to the house, interspersed with the odd hiccup as she fisted Carol's sweater to her face. Glenn's car was there and her heart leapt. She looked over to the passenger side and the baby was asleep, although she wondered how he could when the ride had been so jerky.

Glenn and Maggie raced out to greet her, halting abruptly as she clambered out of the truck, the girl clinging to her like a baby monkey.

"Where the hell did she come from?" Glenn blurted out, rushing to help her step off the truck.

"Has Daryl been back? How long ago did they leave?"

"He drove up as far as the boundary and then he took off, just ten minutes ago!" Maggie answered. "Oh my god, there's two!" She had to raise her voice to be heard over the little girl's squalls.

"How long have they been gone?" Carol pressed, she tried to pull the girl away from her to hand her over to Maggie but her tiny hands were stronger than she thought and she screamed louder at the action. "Glenn, get the baby seat out. Maggie, there's some bags on the truck, can you get them?"

"They left about forty minutes ago. Daddy and Beth stayed." Maggie did as she was asked, hopping over the side of the truck to dig out the unknown bags.

"It's too late." Carol breathed. It wouldn't have taken long to get to the camp, it was just a few miles away. They were too late. She wanted to cry, she needed to cry. The tears couldn't come though, there was too much to do. "We need to get inside, come on."

Glenn fumbled with the baby seat, struggling to thread the belt from the back of the safety catches and Carol pushed past him to do it one handed, finally getting it free and carefully passing the baby and seat to Glenn who clearly wasn't used to children because he handled it like a tray of glasses. Or a ticking timebomb.

"Where did they come from?" Hershel and Beth met them at the door and Carol found herself completely overwhelmed with the questions that they all seemed to be throwing at her. She hadn't had a chance to take a good look at the children yet, to make sure they were alright.

"I need some water to clean her up." She told them and Hershel nodded, leaving the room. "Beth, I need you to look for a change of clothes for her, alright? Anything as long as it's cleaner than this." She pulled herself and the little one to the floor once they made it to the conservatory.

Glenn stayed in the kitchen with the baby and she asked he and Maggie to find the woman's handbag, to find out if there was any clue as to the children's identies. Hershel brought the water and she advised him to keep watch, promising to tell them the full story once she had calmed the child down some.

It took a lot of soothing words and gentle tugging before she could eventually prise the girl from her chest. The screams had died down again, the sobs had gone dry and heaving and she let Carol unbutton her dress, tossing it aside to rub the cloth over her hands and arms. She tried talking to her as she worked, little snippets of nothing, asking her questions about her favourite colours and favourite foods. She got very little in the way of response, just sniffling and once she had settled a little more, the odd nod.

Carol wondered if this incident had ruined this little girl for life. She hoped not. But then, who knew how long her life would be?

There was a soft tap on the door as Carol buttoned up the clean dress on her and Maggie pushed her head through, clutching a handful of passports. "Katie." She said and the little girl's head shot up. "Her name's Katie Maria Montez."

"Oh Katie, what a beautiful name for a beautiful little girl." She crooned at the little one with a smile. She was a pretty child, once all the blood had been lifted from her skin. Dark, wide eyes, tan, chubby cheeks and a rosebud mouth, topped with a mass of wavy hair that was as dark as it could get without being black.

"There's nothing we can see for the baby. Maybe he was born after the Walkers came." Maggie shrugged. Carol picked up Katie to move back to the kitchen.

"Is he still asleep?" She asked.

"Yeah, hasn't moved. There's few bits of baby food, diapers and stuff. What happened, Carol?"

Carol sighed and sat at the table and Hershel came in from outside to hear the story.

"We were on our way to get the fuel. We were by that bridge, the one nearest to the highway when we heard gun shots. They were on the road below. The car had been run off the road. There was a jeep, guys in like, police armour or something. Bullet proof vests and helmets. They emptied the boot of the car. Boxes of stuff, I don't know what." She looked down at the girl in her lap, she was quiet now, fiddling with the edge of Carol's scarf. "They shot them." She whispered. "Just shot them and drove off." She cleared her throat. "They were from that camp. We knew it. You could just tell by looking at them. They headed back in that direction. We were going to leave when we heard Katie cry. Couldn't leave them. Just couldn't." Her tone was apologetic. Those extra few minutes might have cost the Grimes family and T-Dog their lives.

"Of course you couldn't." Maggie agreed, but Carol looked up to Hershel. The man knew exactly why her tone was apologetic, even if the others hadn't realised why. He nodded his head in agreement however, slow and firm.

"Daryl's gone looking for them. We have to wait here 'til he gets back." She pressed her chin to Katie's head and the little girl sighed.

"Then we wait." Glenn said, stepping through the door to keep watch.

TWDTWDTWD

He was gone for almost two hours. Way longer than he should've been and Carol struggled to keep from panicking. Katie relaxed her somewhat, gave her a focus, she sat at the kitchen table with her, feeding her pieces of candy to try and coax her into speaking and to deducing what her little brother's name was.

The baby was easy and for that, Carol was grateful. Maggie, Glenn and Beth all shied away from feeding him and although Hershel was willing to do it, he preferred to wait outside, keeping watch and away from the occassional cries of Katie.

There were a few nappies in the bags, a tin of powdered baby milk, a few jars of baby food, if they were following the labels, Baby Montez was between 4 and 6 months. He was dark just like Katie, long lashes that were wasted on a boy and chubby limbs. As much as Katie cried, he smiled, bouncing gleefully as Carol eventually managed to free her hands to pluck him from the carrier to feed him. They would now need to stop to retrieve more supplies for the children because what they had wouldn't last more than a couple of days.

It was then it struck her that these children were likely to be permanent additions to their group. It was terrifying. Carol couldn't even look after herself. She knew immediately it would her role to care for them. Glenn, Maggie and Beth had already recoiled from helping her with them and Lori, if Lori made it back, she would be too busy with her own child and the one on the way to do much to help.

She didn't want the responsibility. She couldn't keep Sophia alive, how on earth could she expect to keep two helpless babies going? To form an attachment to them, only to have them snatched away? She didn't know if her heart could take it. And what about Daryl? Although he didn't hesitate to save the children, would he be prepared to protect them too? She relied on him and so would they if they stayed. He might not want to take up the role. And then what would happen?

When she finally heard the rumble of the motorcycle's engine she jumped from the seat, struggling to keep hold on both children as she bolted out the door.

Daryl was alone. Her heart sunk with the realisation that they were too late. The Grimes family were gone. He pulled up next to the truck and sighed and shook his head when he saw them all, waiting with baited breath.

"Couldn't find 'em anywhere. Got as close as I could to the camp, nothin' to see." He didn't stop to talk to them, immediately rolling the bike to the back of the truck and pulling the board out to run it up. Once he got the bike strapped down, he went into the saddlebag, pulling out a handful objects. "Went back to the bridge. See if there was anythin' that could help." He pulled out a small baby doll and held it out.

"Baba!" Katie cried, arms outstretched on spotting the doll that was clearly a beloved toy. "My baba!" He stepped forward and hesitantly held the toy out and she leaned from Carol's arm, snatching it from him as soon as it came into reach and pressing a kiss to it's plastic cheek.

"Got these off their arms." He held out two plastic wristbands, snapped. They were bright green and each had black numbering, declaring them to be their civilian numbers. "I reckon they mighta come from the camp and made a run for it." The others leaned forward to take a look at the bands. "We gotta go. If we got spotted, or if Rick tells them that we're here before he knows..."

"OK, let's get going then." Glenn nodded an agreement and Carol looked up to see the younger man clearly a lump in his throat. "We can't do anything else."

There was scuffle to pack up the last of their things and Carol set the baby seat back into the truck. There was no room in Glenn's car for them to take the seat safely and she had no doubt that Katie would not be parted from her right now, although she seemed a little more content now that she had her doll. They would have to make do with all four of them in the truck.

"You alright?" He asked her, once the engine was running. Carol just nodded, pulling the seat belt around both herself and Katie who would only sit in her lap. "It's gonna get even harder now, ya know that?" He told her softly.

She needed to know that. The last thing they needed was these kids. Kids made noise, ate everything and contributed nothing. It was hard enough protecting Carol as it was, even now that she getting a little bit better at looking after herself. Two children would probably mean an even earlier death.

"I know. But what are we supposed to do?" She murmured back, a hand reaching to stroke the little girl's hair. He looked down at her and caught her gaze, wide, wet eyes staring him up at him unabashedly from her place resting against Carol's chest. "I don't _want_ to be responsible for them, Daryl. But who else will do it?"

Daryl wished he could've been the guy who would've walked away from them. Merle would've. Survival of the fittest he would've called it. But even if Carol hadn't had been with him, he didn't think he would've. What kind of asshole would just leave two kids as Walker food?

He didn't know what else to say. Carol spoke only to the children and he learnt that the little girl's name was Katie and Carol was coaxing her into telling her the baby boy's name. She didn't say much, the odd mumbled word here and there.

"Can they even talk at this age?" He asked her eventually, after getting sick of her asking Katie the same question over and over.

Carol let out a chuckle at his lack of knowledge, although she wasn't surprised. "Course she can. She's two and a half, according to her passport. She's just in shock. And a little shy. You're not a baby, are you Katie?" She cooed at the girl.

"No, I'm big girl. Joe is baby." The little girl replied.

"Joe?" Carol asked.

"Baby Joe." She pointed at her brother and the baby giggled to himself. Carol was dumbfounded, all that questioning and for a question from Daryl to get the answer for her?

"Baby Joe it is." She said to Daryl. He almost let out a smile as he turned his focus back on the road.

TWDTWDTWD

The first stop was meant to be a gas station just off the highway, about 80 miles from the house they'd stayed in the previous night. Daryl insisted that they went there, even with their new additions and leave details of the next part of their journey. Just in case.

It took far too long to get there. Kids were a pain in the ass, he decided, not that he didn't know it already. Katie had to pee three times and they had to pull over for Carol to sort her out. She left him alone with the baby and he wondered the hell why she would trust him with the task. He was crap with kids. The third time the baby began howling once Carol and Katie made it a few feet from the truck and he looked to Carol helplessly when the baby started squalling. She only shot him a look that suggested he better deal with it and eventually he figured out that he needed to ram the fallen pacifier back in the kid's mouth to shut him up. It worked, but still. He did not "do" babies.

Then Joe unleashed a smell that was so vile he thought he might choke to death on it and they had to stop again for Carol to deal with it. He cried for food and she did that as he drove but it meant pulling Katie from her lap to do so which equalled to more tears from the little girl. Eventually she sat between Daryl and Carol as Carol spoon fed mush to the baby, chewing on a cracker of her own, staring up at him with fear and curiosity. It was unnerving, to be watched so openly.

He was seriously considering getting back on the bike and wondered if Carol would murder him if he did. He decided that it might be worth suffering her displeasure to avoid this torture.

He sighed with relief once he spotted the signs for the gas station and slowed as he caught sight of Walkers on the forecourt. Only three, but they needed to be dealt with quickly.

Glenn pulled up the car next to him and gave him the nod that said he was ready to go and together they got out of the vehicles, armed with knives and Daryl's crossbow to take out the problem.

It was easy, relatively mess free and he pulled his arrows from the fallen when he caught the blur of movement in the corner of his eye. He loaded up the bow again, raising in the direction of the movement and had his finger poised to release the arrow, when the hands of his target lifted in surrender.

"Woah now, take it easy."


	20. Chapter 20

Author's Note: Thank you for the reads and reviews. All much obliged and not expected. Apologies for the unusual delay in updating. Busy weekend, combined with a bit of a writer's block on this story and total inspiration on others!

TWDTWDTWD

"Fuck! Don't be fuckin' creepin' up on us like that, ya almost had an arrow in the fuckin' eye." Daryl spat out, lowering his weapon.

The target chuckled lightly, lowering his own rifle and reached out to pat Daryl on the back.

"What the hell are you doin' here, T-Dog?" He asked, shifting from foot to foot. Relief washed over him when he recognised the man, because with T-Dog was surely the rest of them.

"Waitin' on you!" T-Dog told him. "Been here hours man, beginning to wonder if you'd changed routes."

"Why didn't you go to Sheldon?" Glenn asked as they walked back towards the cars.

"Fuck, let's get to the important shit first, you secured the area? Where's Rick?" Daryl interrupted, wrenching the truck door open.

"Lori and Carl are inside, building's cleared and Rick's just around the back in the car, looking at the maps, we can't stay here tonight man, it's way too open." Daryl agreed, the gas station was on the brow of a hill, no greenery in sight and now he had a chance to look, plenty of Walker remains lay scattered about. Aullville had spoiled them, having been cleared out already.

"Let's get inside an' then we can get to the chit chat." He gestured for Carol to step down out of the truck, she clambered out, pulling her handbag over her head before pulling Katie out.

"Get the kids inside before they start squallin'." He told her and she nodded, coming around the front of the truck to pull the baby seat from the passenger side. T-Dog let out a gasp as he saw what was attached to Carol's hip, visibly gobsmacked.

"Where the hell did they come from?" He asked as the others moved out of Glenn's car.

Carol collared Beth as the girl skipped past her to follow her sister, wordlessly handing her the carrier containing Joe, so she could take the baby bag. Daryl hovered nearby, crossbow still in hand. She knew better than to ask him to do it though, the children seemed to physically repulse him and she did not miss the way he looked at Katie in truck, as if she were going to bite him if he got too close. Besides, he had the crossbow and they were out in the open, Walkers could spring out at any moment.

Carol sighed and gave T-Dog a weary smile. She was so happy to see him. "I'll explain later."

There was cries of joy when the group were reunited once again, mostly on Carol and Lori's part. The arrival of Katie and Joe were clearly the biggest shock of the day, so Carol tediously explained the whole sorry story again, trying to keep her words from being understood by the little girl hovering around her legs, looking up at them all with wide eyes.

"I know they're going to be hard work, Lori. I made the decision to bring them with us, and I know that means I have to carry the consequences of that." Carol was almost begging for forgiveness to her friend and Daryl wondered why, when as a mother, Lori would understand better than anyone when it came to the children. "I just..."

"There wasn't even another way it would go, Carol." Rick interrupted her from her apology with a squeeze of her shoulder. "It'll be fine. Once we get to the state park, it's going to be fine."

"Not that we aren't glad to see you all, but I think the question on everyone's mind is, why are you here? What happened?" Hershel spoke for them all, looking too Rick, but it was Lori who spoke.

"I changed my mind. It was a stupid idea." She said softly, gathering up the last of their things to put back into the car. "This group...we shouldn't split up. We have to stick together." She gave a firm nod of her head and Carol beamed at her. "And it was clearly the right decision." She gestured towards Katie, clutching the knee of Carol's jeans.

"Hate to break up the party, but let's get the hell outta here 'cause there ain't much daylight left." Daryl lead the way out of the gas station, taking Carol's bag from her. The gesture did not go unnoticed by her and he avoided the quirk of her eyebrow, silently questioning him. Daryl was many things, but gentlemanly gestures like taking her bag were not common, not without good reason.

Daryl made the gesture deliberately, because he could see that everyone else had their hands full and he did not want to be the one to have to carry the baby, even if it was in a seat. Knowing his luck, the thing would start screaming the moment he picked it up, drawing every Walker for miles. Or he'd drop it and Carol would never forgive him.

He felt bad for a moment as he turned away from her, ignoring her perform the juggling act of holding the carrier and the toddler, but she managed to do it, following him to the truck.

There was nowhere suitable for them to house in properly for the night, not if they wanted to get settled before dark, so it was to be another night spent in the cars, a few miles from the gas station they met up at. Food was dished out, mostly things eaten cold from the can and Carol had to coax Katie into eating cold spaghetti hoops. Clearly the little girl was used to hot meals back at Camp Sheldon, if indeed, that's where they came from.

Lori had taken over the feeding of Joe whilst they ate, for which Carol was grateful. Keeping the two of them quiet at the camp was a difficult task. Katie had calmed down some but now she had found her voice a little, she persistantly questioned Carol about the whereabouts of her Mama and Dada and it broke Carol's heart everytime she had to answer her.

Daryl did not sleep in the truck that first night. He hadn't said anything to suggest if he would or wouldn't but he was on watch when Carol fell asleep in the back of the cab with both the children. Joe woke her a few hours later and she was glad she had remembered to prepare bottles for him ready, recalling the days when Sophia used to wake her every three hours, on the dot.

When she finally settled him back down, she realised that Daryl wasn't there. She managed to extricate herself from the tiny nook where the children slept, crawling over the top of the bench to get out the door. She could see Glenn on watch a few yards away and he gave her a nod when he heard her open the truck door. She found him in the truck bed and he was awake when she clambered up, using the wheel to give her a boost.

"You must be freezing." She whispered by way of greeting and he just gave a grunt that didn't really indicate whether he was or wasn't cold.

She sat herself beside him, drawing her knees up to her chest. "Come in the truck."

"Nah, 's crowded in there." He told her, shifting his arms under his head to make himself a little more comfortable.

Carol sighed, getting up and returning to the truck, picking up the extra sleeping bag from the floor. He was sitting up when she returned and she tossed it over the side. "Night."

It was tempting to freeze her butt off and sleep in the truck bed with him. She wanted to be near him. But it was clear he needed the space on this night and she needed to be close to the children anyway. She had to ward off their cries as soon as they left their mouths, lest Walkers be swarming on them before they knew it. So instead she clambered back into the little space in the back of the truck cab with a sigh.

TWDTWDTWD

His distance that night seemed to set the tone for the next few days. It was the most tiring time Carol had experienced, being on the road with two small children. When the days were dry, he road the bike, letting one of the women ride in the truck with Carol instead. He initially claimed that it was so he could scout on ahead, look for somewhere safe to hole up so they could gather more supplies, things they hadn't thought they had needed until Katie and Joe arrived. Eventually he stopped even using the excuse and she just sighed everytime he kicked up the engine and drove off ahead of her.

On the days it rained, he reluctantly took his place behind the wheel of the truck and Carol could feel the resentment radiating from him with every mile they drove. He barely took his eyes from the road and had very little to say to her, no matter how hard she tried for conversation. Katie was becoming more talkative with every passing day, although, understandably she was still prone to fits of tears when she remembered her mother and father were not coming for her. But in between jags of crying, she sat between her brother and Carol chatting away happily. She seemed to not notice that Daryl never once acknowledged her, even as she jabbered away to him, talking about this and that, never worrying that she didn't have any answers from him.

She missed him. It sounded stupid, even in her own head, but it was true. They had been in close to proximity to each other for weeks and she missed it. She missed the sex. Such a trivial reason and it made her feel like she was being completely unreasonable, but they hadn't had sex since the day before they found the children and she needed it now. She had gone so long in life hating it and he had changed that and now she couldn't be without it. She wondered if they would ever have sex again, seeing as he now saw the children that clung to her hips as the ultimate turn off.

The exhaustion was making it worse. She couldn't ever remember it being this difficult with Sophia. But they were relentless in keeping her attention. Joe woke every three hours or so and it sometimes woke Katie too, meaning that by the time they were both settled, it was almost time again for the next feed. She was barely surviving on four hours sleep a night. During the day it was feeds and changes, constantly trying to figure out the unique language of a toddler and trying to keep them amused in the truck with no toys. She had to cut every cry at the quick and she knew it was no good for them in the long run. They were quickly realising they only had to squawk once for her to come running to give them what they wanted.

She felt guilty that she resented them already. She resented the others for not helping her enough. Sure, they all did something if she asked, but no-one volunteered, not even Lori anymore. Yes, she was the one who chose to pick them up from the road, but she would never believe that any of them wouldn't have done the same. But then, at the same time, she wanted to do it by herself. To take on a role of her own. She felt guilt that they were cooped up in the truck all day, no chance to run around. Joe was wanting to sit up, she could see, but she was forced to leave him in the baby seat and when they were stopped, she had to stick to carrying him, just incase he ended up face down in dirt. She'd been doing this for just a few days and already she felt like she was doing a terrible job.

They drove her to tears, although she tried to hide them. It was an awful feeling of uselessness and it took her back to darker moments, a place she had thought she was rid of and it only made her feel even worse. She was weak. She was unable to even do a job she had done before the Walkers.

They finally stopped once they hit Kansas, settling for a house on hill, just a few miles outside a large town. Carol commandeered the large bedroom on the ground floor and found a blow up mattress for Katie. The little girl was passed out on it immediately after dinner, for which Carol was grateful. She sat at the kitchen table with the others, helping construct the list of supplies they desperately needed before they could move on, bouncing Joe on her knee.

"Look, I think I should come with you for this one." She spoke to Glenn and Rick, because if Daryl could spend days ignoring her, she could ignore him too.

"No." Daryl barked out the word before she could even finish her sentence, glowering at her from his spot, sitting on the kitchen counter.

She shot him a look of annoyance. "Look at my list. You boys don't have the faintest clue when it comes to this stuff. I'll be quicker. Some stuff, I won't know I need until I see it." It seemed ridiculous, the piece of paper covered in her scrawled demands. Excessive and not worth the risk, it would seem like to the others.

"If you ain't needed it yet, you ain't gonna." He grumbled at her, strumming his fingers angrily against the marble surface.

"Oh, because you have so much experience with children, right?" Carol snapped out, ceasing her jiggling motion with Joe. They all turned to gape at her, because Carol never lost her temper. She sighed when she realised how she sounded, moving the baby to her breast to try and rock him to sleep. "He's going to be teething soon, it'll be noisy if I don't have the right things. The right formula, proper baby food. And Katie is bored out of her mind and you already know how she doesn't stop talking." She spoke to Daryl now, but he wouldn't look at her.

Rick looked from Carol and Daryl and back again, quickly assessing the pair and Carol knew he was trying to diffuse what could potentially become an argument.

"Let us go first, get what we can." Rick snapped a hand up when she made to respond. "I _have_ had a kid, so I do know what to look for. If we're missing things that you really need, we'll make another run before we leave and you can come. Deal?"

Carol nodded her head once and stood up, never stopping her rocking motion. She bid them goodnight and headed off to the bedroom, without another look at Daryl.

TWDTWDTWD

She didn't expect him to join her that night and after putting Joe back down for his feed a little before midnight, she decided to search for him. She knew he wouldn't be upstairs, because she and Lori had divvied up the bedrooms and he was lumped together with her, before their spat in the kitchen. The only other place he would be able to sleep was the living room and he was sprawled across the couch when she opened the door.

He jolted awake on hearing her open the door, settling back down when he realised it was her.

"Are you going to avoid me forever?" She sat near his feet and he drew them away from her.

"I ain't avoidin' ya." He mumbled, hand resting over his eyes.

"Oh, that so? Why aren't you in the same bed as me then?" She crossed her arms and spoke bluntly, because it was the only manner of speaking which Daryl understood.

"'Cause I don't wanna share with a bunch of kids."

Carol let out a huff and slid closer to him. "Please, don't do this." She reached out for him, sliding a hand across his stomach. She was relieved that he didn't pull away from her, but he didn't really respond either. "I don't think I can cope with them without you."

He pulled his hand away from his eyes at that and Carol took that as an opportunity to slide next to him, pushing herself between him and the back of the couch. He made no attempt at resistance as she made herself comfortable, hooking one leg over his, arms sliding around his waist.

She would've been content to fall asleep there and then, until Joe's cries would be heard in the room across the way, if it wasn't for the hand that snaked up her bare thigh, drawing her leg up higher across his waist. She sighed with contentment, moving to straddle Daryl's waist and pushed his hands to her hips to steady her.

"Do you know it's been a whole week?" She murmured, hands bracing herself either side of his head.

"Don't fuckin' remind me." He breathed, mouth inches from her neck. She ground herself against him slightly and his hips shifted upwards to meet hers. He slid his hands up her shirt, letting them roam higher and higher and she let out a soft moan when he hit his two targets, running his fingers over her breasts, thumbing her nipples into peaks.

She said nothing for a moment, enjoying the wave of pleasure rush into her core as he teased her lightly, responding by pressing her crotch into his and savouring his own sighs, breath pushing out and landing on the exposed skin of her collarbones.

Eventually, she could wait no longer, pushing herself up and grabbing him by the front of his shirt to drag him with her. "Bed, now." She commanded, standing up and taking him firmly by the hands. He let her pull him upright but he clung to her waist before she could lead him out of the room.

"I ain't fuckin' you with them in there. It's weird." He mumbled, lifting her shirt to press his lips to her stomach.

"They won't wake up." She told him, dragging him upwards. "Do you really want someone else walking in on us?"

She took his hand, leading him into the bedroom, finger pressed to her lips in warning. He was hesitant and in the flickering candlelight he could see Katie sprawled over a blow up mattress on the floor, Joe tucked into his carrier in the corner beside her.

She was undressed and laying on the bed before he had even unbuttoned his pants and he stifled a chuckle at her eagerness. She clambered on top of him in seconds, hands clutching at his to steady herself as she circled her hips. He had to pull his hand away to cover her mouth at one point, her breathy moans were on the verge of becoming cries and the last thing he wanted was a baby to break up their fun.

It didn't take her long to come, thighs clenching around his hips, nails scratching at his skin, but he wanted to prolong their coupling, because who knew how long it would be before they could do it again? He clutched her waist, pulling her underneath him, drawing her legs up to give him a new angle to enter her. She keened against his lips and he pushed his tongue into her mouth, forcing her silence as she pulled at his hair and it was enough to make him see stars, coming quickly.

She fell asleep before he could discard the condom, sighing with pleasure, hands fluttering over his skin, pulling him to her without asking for him. She never normally asked for this closeness, but he let her have it, even though he was acutely aware of the children just a few feet away. He resolved to leave the room before they woke in the morning.

He woke groggily and he realised that it was still dark. There was a sharp cry that was quickly followed by Carol shuffling out of the bed. When he finally rubbed his eyes so he could see properly, she was sitting on the edge, still naked and he could hear the contented gurgling and sucking sounds coming from Joe, tiny fingers plucking at the bottle of milk at his mouth, swaddled in a blanket, resting against Carol's chest.

Carol turned and gave Daryl a soft, sleepy smile and before he could stop himself, he returned it, hand reaching out to stroke the small of her back. She looked absolutely beautiful in the golden glow of the flickering candlelight. Her overgrown hair, sticking up at the back in curling tufts, lean shoulders sprinkled with pale freckles and the expression on her face made him want to pull her close there and then.

His eyes flickered closed and when he opened them again, she had her back pressed against his chest, legs wrapped up in his. Her rhythmic breathing told him she was already asleep again. He moved his arm to wrap around his waist when his fingers brushed against something unfamiliar. Lifting his head up, his eyes met with the little one, dark eyes wide and alert, sucking softly on a pacifier. He seemed content enough, although not close to sleeping and Daryl wondered briefly if it were safe for Carol to sleep with him in the bed. He didn't know if were normal behaviour because he hadn't spent a night with her since they arrived.

He wanted to get up and go. Desperately. But he did not want to upset Carol. He wanted to be near her. He settled for reassuring himself once again that he would be gone by morning, before they woke up. He pushed his hand between Carol and Joe, trying to ignore the warmth of the child against his knuckles and the faint motions of the little one as his hands plucked lightly at Daryl's skin as he soothed himself to sleep.


	21. Chapter 21

Author's Notes: Thank you everyone for sticking with me this far. I originally pegged this story at 22/23 chapters but it's likely to be a little bit more than that. Definitely under 30 though, for my own sanity!

TWDTWDTWD

The tugging on the sheets woke Carol first and the cold air hitting her chest had her yanking them back over herself. She quickly realised she was the only adult left in the room, Daryl's side of the bed had long gone cold. Katie started speaking before she'd even opened her eyes, bouncing at the foot of the bed and Carol remembered that she didn't have anything on under the blankets and she hunted out her fallen clothes, scrambling to put them on, all the while deflecting Katie's inquistion as to why she wasn't wearing her "jammies".

By the time she'd sorted them all out into clothes for the day and they trooped into the kitchen, Daryl, Rick and Glenn were almost ready to leave for their scavenge into town, eating breakfast before they went.

"Hey, so like, a highchair would be a really good idea, right?" Glenn asked her, watching her struggle to help Katie with her peanut butter covered crackers and spooning a fussing Joe the apple flavoured mush into his mouth.

She smiled at the good intention behind his question, but had to chuckle at the ridiculousness of it.

"No, we'll live without it, until we get to the Fort Robinson at least. Have you seen how bulky those things are, anyway? I doubt there will be room on the truck for it."

Rick looked a little incredulously at Glenn, possibly because he realised just how idiotic it would be to run into a horde of Walkers for a high chair. Daryl looked at him like he had two heads, most likely because he considered anything the children required, aside from food as utterly ridiculous, or so Carol thought. Maybe he just didn't know what a high chair was.

"We'll be back by dark, I expect. Maybe later if we can get more done. See T-Dog if anything is bothering you. Try to keep the kids indoors, so we can keep the noise to a minimum." Rick asked of her, giving her a quick pat on the shoulder before leaving the room to say goodbye to his wife.

She tried not to bristle at the order, but it was tricky. She was still tired and she knew that every little thing would niggle at her when normally it wouldn't cross her mind. But she wasn't an idiot, she knew the land wasn't safe and she wasn't about to let the children out at the risk of death of them all.

Glenn followed behind Rick but Daryl lingered, sitting opposite her at the table, hands fidgeting in front of him.

"Thanks for doing this." She murmured as she pushed another mouthful of puree into Joe's eager mouth.

"I ain't gonna let kids go without, Carol." He said it defensively, as if she were thinking him as inhuman.

"I know. I'm still thankful." She smiled down at the baby as he clumsily grabbed at the plastic spoon, trying to fit more in.

"You want cracker?" Daryl's gaze jerked down from Carol's face to Katie, who's face was smeared with peanut butter. She held out a half eaten cracker at him, fingers coated with the thick topping.

Carol tried to keep her head down, to not draw attention to the smile that played on her lips as he studied the little girl. She wasn't sure whether he would even answer her, because he usually tried to pretend she didn't exist.

"No." He eventually told her and she just shrugged, stuffing the thing into her mouth whole.

"Katie Marie! Don't push the whole cracker in your mouth, you'll choke on it!" She chastised the little girl, who gave her a peanut butter covered grin, bits of cracker crumbling out of her mouth.

Eventually Daryl pushed the chair back, standing up and walking past her.

"I'll see ya later." His fingers brushed her neck, squeezing lightly and she leant backwards into his touch.

"Be safe." She told him and he gave her a nod. And then he was gone.

TWDTWDTWD

The day dragged. Despite the relatively peaceful breakfast, the rest of the day did not follow suit. Joe fussed constantly and she was unable to pass him on to anyone else for respite. There was nothing wrong that she could see, he was just bored, she thought and crying gave him something to do.

Katie cried too, although her outbursts verged on tantrums, crying out that she missed her mother and father. It broke Carol's heart to hear her, knowing that nothing any of them could do would help. She managed to hunt out some paper and pens, giving her the tools to draw pictures with and that did quieten her down some. Until of course, she left them in the care of Carl and Beth for a few moments whilst she went to the bathroom. She'd finally managed to get Joe to go onto the carpet of the living room for awhile, giving him the chance to roll about freely and within moments she heard his little-heard sharp squeal. She ran in to see blue pen marking his face and arms and Katie with a satisfied expression of an artist who had created a masterpiece.

Lori was sick the entire day. She spent most of it in bed, leaving Carol responsible for Carl, who constantly battled with her to be let outside to help T-Dog, Maggie and Hershel patrol the area. She asked Beth to start preparations for dinner, which she promptly ruined and by 6pm, Carol had shed a bucketful of tears in the privacy of her room.

It didn't help that she constantly fretted over Daryl and the other men. Sure, they were getting fuel and food, a few more winter clothes and of course, medical supplies and ammo, but the bulk of their raid would be for formula and diapers, onesies and toys. It seemed so silly that she asked them for these things and she would rather have gone herself to get them, it only seemed fair.

She distracted herself by sorting through the Montez children's mother's handbag that evening, pulling precious family photos from her purse and slotting them into her own bag, along with passports and driver's licenses. If they made it to their teenage years, the children would have questions about their parents, most of which Carol probably couldn't answer, but she would give them everything she could. The bag was extra luggage they couldn't afford to carry, so once cleared of everything that could be of use, she would leave it behind when they moved on.

She crawled into bed with tears rolling down her cheeks and weariness in her heart. Neither child had fallen asleep until after ten and she had tried in vain to stay up past midnight, so she could be there when the men arrived back, but she hadn't wanted to cry in front of T-Dog, Maggie and Hershel, who were also waiting for their return so she retreated to bed and she slept fitfully until Joe woke her for his next feed.

She let him sleep beside her again, taking comfort from his little warm body and she woke up from a doze to hear the sound of low voices outside her door. She sat up, ready to jump from the bed when the door creaked open, causing the candle on the shelf above her to flicker.

She couldn't help but sigh with relief when she recognised the shadow in the doorway. He shut the door quietly, kicking off his boots and sliding off his weapons before he even looked at her. He went to drop the belt holding his knives to the floor and she saw his gaze flicker over to Katie, before drawing them back up and tucking them onto a shelf way above her reach. He was learning.

"Are you alright?" She whispered to him as he pulled off his jacket and vest and he nodded in response. "Rick and Glenn too?" He nodded again and she let out a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding. He slid under the covers beside her, taking care not to shake the bed as he made himself comfortable.

"What's wrong?" He asked her, spotting a drying tear on her cheek and she lifted her hand to brush it away quickly.

"Nothing. I'm fine. Just a long, hard day, that's all." She murmured to him and he appraised her for a moment, before nodding.

She turned back on her side to face the baby and hummed with contentment when Daryl rolled over too, pressing his chest up against her back.

"You know Glenn nearly damn well dragged a high chair back here?" He whispered in her ear, mirth in his voice.

"He did not?" She asked, incredulously.

"Yep, hadta drag it outta his hands." He pressed his arm around her waist, pulling her closer so that his arm rested comfortably between her and Joe. The baby stirred, spitting his pacifier out and they both froze until he returned to his deep breathing.

"Boy woulda dragged the whole of Mothercare into the truck if it woulda fit." He

mumbled into her neck.

She smiled at that. She had a thousand questions to ask but Daryl seemed content to do nothing but sleep and she let him be, if only because she knew it would only be a couple of hours until Joe woke again.

TWDTWDTWD

They all woke later than usual that morning, the children included. Still, she tried to let Daryl sleep by shushing them and pulling them out of the room silently. It didn't work because before she even managed to boil some water for porridge and coffee, he was up behind her, stretching and yawning.

"Go back to bed." She told him but he just shrugged.

"Nah, I'm good. Gonna start draggin' the boxes in."

There was more than Carol thought there would be. Boxes and bags of food, the stuff would last them weeks, if they were careful. Two massive black bags of various coats and warm clothes. A bag of weapons, bullets that rattled and clinked as Daryl brought the bag in.

Then there was the children's things. Daryl was right, Glenn did have a field day. The boy couldn't do anything half-assed and Carol was grateful, although she wondered how they were going to fit all the stuff in the truck when Daryl put the bike back on.

It took her all morning to sort through it all. The others eventually trickled downstairs and they helped her sort through the last of it. Some stuff could be left behind, a few pieces of clothes that wouldn't fit either child. The toys were taken by Katie straight away, who plonked herself in the corner and stayed there for over an hour, the longest Carol had seen her amuse herself for.

Glenn rummaged through the boxes to produce what he called his jackpot, a a complicated contraption of strong cloth and metal rings, it looked like some sort of baby carrier.

She laughed at his enthusiasm and Lori helped her figure out how it worked. It was a clever thing, she thought and she would've wanted something like this when Sophia was a baby. It allowed Joe to fit across her back or her chest, or to form a sling if he wanted to sleep whilst being carried. It would mean her hands would be free to do so much more.

Of course, there were still things that they were missing. There wasn't many diapers in the right size, most were too big, although they would be useful eventually, she would need more to take them through to Nebraska without any big runs. They could do with some teething gel too, maybe some baby wipes.

She wrote the list as she went along and she tried to ignore Daryl's sigh every time she added something to it. It wouldn't do to pretend that it would be alright and then run out of something at a crucial moment. He'd be angrier with her about that. Truth was though, she'd like to go out. Be free of the children for just a few hours. She felt guilty thinking it, but it was all just so full on. She couldn't even get peace in her own mind anymore, because they dogged every thought she had.

When she finished, she handed the list to Rick and he scanned it wearily, before nodding that he understood.

"So I can go?" She asked hopefully. "I'll go by myself if I have to."

"No you fuckin' well ain't." Daryl took the list from Rick, reading it for himself.

"You sure ya actually need all this crap?" He asked her critically.

"Yes, I need this crap." She sighed, bending down to push Joe back onto the rug, where he fiddled with a small teddy bear. "Can you keep an eye on them whilst I start lunch please, Beth?"

Beth nodded reluctantly, sliding from the couch to the floor, to sit next to Joe.

TWDTWDTWD

"You don't need to go." Daryl followed her into the kitchen, arms folded across his chest in a defensive gesture.

"I want to go. It'll be easier." She told him quietly, rooting through boxes for somehing they could eat for lunch.

"I can't watch over you, get my own back and look for all that crap." He replied with a huff, pulling away from the door frame to stand next to her at the table.

"Then Glenn can go." She looked up in time to catch his reaction. One of surprise and disgust. She didn't know what to make of it.

"Yeah, over my dead body are you goin' into a town without me. Fuck. Why can't you just stay here with the kids an' let me and Glenn at it?"

Carol slammed the can in her hand down onto the table and whirled round to face him. "Because, I am going _crazy_ here." She hissed out. "I need to get away from them, even if it's just a couple of hours. I cannot cope much longer, Daryl, I really can't. Especially if I don't have the stuff I need."

He took a step back, surprised at her little tirade. He knew the children were tiring, even he could see how much effort they took and he tried to spend as little time around them as possible. He didn't think she'd feel that way about them though. He figured it would be hard, caring for children after losing her daughter. She was just so damn good at it. He honestly expected them to be a whole lot worse and he knew that she was the reason that they weren't.

"Alright." He answered with a sigh of resignation. She nodded her thanks and he pressed his hand to her neck for a second before leaving her to make lunch in peace.

He headed straight upstairs, where he knew Lori would be. He never, ever approached her alone. Hell, he avoided talking to her at all. Everything about her drove him insane. He knocked the door and pushed it open when she called out and she sat up sharply from the bed when she saw it was him.

"What's wrong?" She asked, pushing the covers back.

"Nothin'. Look, I get ya sick, so I ain't askin' you..." He rubbed the back of his neck as he tried to think of how he was going to get his words out without pissing Lori off. Or getting so pissed off himself he'd lose his temper. "Can ya talk to the other women, 'bout helpin' Carol with the kids some?"

Lori's forehead wrinkled in confusion. "She's struggling?"

He nodded. "She ain't sleepin', baby's keepin' her awake...the girl is just a pain in the ass. Think it might be a bit much, it ain't long since..." He trailed off, not wanting to use the name of the little girl, not since she had died. Lori knew though, nodding with understanding.

"Okay. I'll talk to them. I didn't know it was that bad."

Daryl nodded at her retreating back out the door. "Thanks."

It wasn't as painful as he thought it would be.


	22. Chapter 22

Author's Note: Thank you for all the reads and reviews. Apologies for the gaps between updating now, I hope this massive chapter makes up for it. Find me on Tumblr and Twitter under SepticLovebite!

TWDTWDTWD

Maggie volunteered to take the children in with her and Glenn for the night. The offer came from nowhere and Carol was taken aback. She almost refused, because she didn't think Maggie realised what she let herself in for, but Daryl shot her a look that suggested she better not dare to refuse it, so she compromised by accepting the offer when it came to Katie at least. One child at a time was probably safer for the young couple. Besides, even though she woke every few hours with Joe, it was Katie that wore her out more. If Joe woke up long enough to cry out for his feed, Katie woke up with him and she was far harder to get back to sleep.

The little girl was not overly excited by the prospect of a sleepover with Glenn and Maggie, although she did not react as badly as Carol had expected. Carol retired to the bedroom immediately after dinner, taking Joe with her, making the others promise to call her if Katie became upset. There had been too much turmoil in the young girl's life and she did not want to make it worse for the sake of a couple of hours sleep.

Still, it was nice to just sit on the bed, no chores to complete, just sitting in one of Daryl's shirts that she had commandeered as her pajamas, laughing at Joe as he rolled himself about, trying to sit up properly. He was such an easy child, really, all things considered. He seemed relatively untouched by the death of his parents so far and was generally easy to keep content, as long as he had his pacifier and bottle.

He was a beautiful child too. Wavy dark hair, that when he got older Carol knew was going to grow rapidly and all over the place. Wide eyes that were only a shade off of black, framed with thick black lashes that would make any woman envious. Tan skin and chubby limbs, just like a baby should be. When he giggled, dimples appeared at his cheeks and it was hard not smother him in kisses everytime he did.

Eventually, he began to tire and she gave him a bottle before settling him down on the bed to sleep. She used two pillows either side of him, just in case he rolled anywhere, although he usually never moved more than a couple of inches. She knew Daryl didn't like sharing the bed with the baby, but she hated to leave him in the car seat in when she didn't have to. It wasn't doing him any good. She'd have to hope there would be a cot for him when they got to the state park.

Carol knew she should have gone to bed herself once Joe had fallen asleep, catch up on her own rest, especially since she would be going into town the next day, but she couldn't sit back when she could see the jumble of clothes in the corner of the room, all in need of folding and packing.

Daryl joined her as she was cramming the last of the dirty things into a holdall, ready for washing when they had time. Not in this place, maybe not until Nebraska, but if that was more than a few days away, then she hoped not. He shot her a disapproving look and she just shrugged, zipping the bag closed with a little effort.

"Ya supposed to be gettin' some rack. And ya shoulda given Maggie him too." He nodded his head towards the baby, speaking in a whisper so as not to disturb him.

"He is the easy one. Besides, it would be too much for them to have both him and Katie. And they might not have wanted to have him in their bed, he can't be in that car seat for the whole night." She unbuttoned her pants, sliding them off and folding them onto the chair. "I don't even know why Maggie offered."

Daryl didn't say anything to that and she looked at him curiously as he kicked off his boots. She wanted to ask him if he had anything to do with that. She wouldn't normally assume such a thing, but his silence had her looking to him and there was something a little off. But she decided to remain silent on the matter, his jaw was set firmly and she quickly realised he would not answer her truthfully anyway.

She slid into the bed, pushing the baby over a little to make room for them both, settling the blankets around her hips. They were both silent as Daryl pulled off some of his layers, weapons, sliding from around his waist.

"If ya wanna get away for a few hours, we could just go huntin' instead. Don't have to go to town to get a break." He broke the silence first, hands fiddling with the knife in it's sheath that he had just taken off.

"It's okay. I should go." Her head came off the pillow to watch him as his hands twitched, almost nervously. "They're my responsibility. It's only fair I go get their things."

"Goin' into town ain't ya job. That's mine. With the other boys. It's our job to watch out for the rest of you. Kids included." Carol opened her mouth to protest but he cut her off, sitting next to her on the bed. "It ain't some sexist shit or whatever. You don't know shit about workin' your way outta twenty Walkers, just like I don't know shit about gettin' blood outta jeans. You ain't got nothin' to prove here."

"It isn't the same thing, Daryl." She sighed and rubbed her hand over her face wearily. "Even without that, I should still go anyway, it'll just be quicker."

"I don't want ya to go." His voice turned softer, his hand reaching out to touch her arm.

"I know. But it's going to be fine." She settled her head back down on the pillow, considering the matter settled. She pulled her arm under the covers, catching Daryl's hand in her own and pulling him down to her.

He didn't say anything, just slide next to her, careful not to jostle the baby sleeping peacefully at her side.

TWDTWDTWD

One good thing about having kids around, Daryl noted, was that there would never be a need for an alarm clock. He wanted to get up early so that he and Carol could just get the trip over and done with quickly and Katie made sure of that. He didn't even hear the bedroom door creak open, or the slap of small bare feet on the wood floor. Instead he felt the tug on the blankets behind his back, on the edge of the bed. He shifted with a start and twisted around to meet the wide eyes of the little girl, hair sticking up in all directions, her pajamas creased.

She just looked at him for a moment and Daryl wondered what exactly she wanted.

"Go back to bed." His voice was quiet but hoarse from sleep, gruffer than he intended it to sound. It was good to be up early, but not this early. It wasn't even close to light yet. Katie shook her head, tugging on the blankets once more. "What?" Daryl asked again, Carol didn't stir beside him, but for once, he wished she would.

"Wanna get up." She stomped her foot a little and smacked his arm, although it didn't hurt, he pulled the limb away from her reach.

"Jesus fuckin' Christ." He mumbled under his breath, but he turned around to pull one arm free from the bed, grabbing Katie firmly by the waist and lifting her over onto the bed. He set her down underneath the baby's feet and Carol shifted and groaned sleepily at the unfamiliar weight that was fidgeting against her stomach. When she opened her eyes a touch, spotting the girl, she rolled onto her back and Katie made no hesitation to burrow her way between Carol and Daryl, tucking herself into Carol's side, effectively pushing Daryl out.

Carol smiled as she heard him tut with disapproval. This bed was far too small for four of them. She reached a hand over Katie to pull his arm over them both and he let her, although he was unresponsive.

"I promise it'll be roomier in Nebraska." She murmured to him and she felt his fingers curl around her hip in response.

Forty minutes later and all peace was destroyed when Maggie and Glenn came barrelling into their room, huffing and puffing. "Oh thank _God_. I thought we lost her." Maggie sighed in relief, slumping against the door frame.

"What the fuck? Get the hell out!" Daryl jumped up from the bed, jarring the others from sleep.

Glenn only laughed, hands up in surrender, probably due to sheer relief from having found Katie. "I'm pretty sure you aren't supposed to swear in front of kids."

"Glenn." Daryl warned, one finger pointing at the younger man.

Maggie's head disappeared from the door but Glenn only stood there, laughing still, not looking at him, but just at his shoulder. Daryl felt the small warm hands on his skin and turned his head, Katie's face was inches from his, pulling faces at Glenn from behind Daryl's shoulder. She stopped abruptly when Daryl turned to look at her and when he turned back to Glenn, there was no longer anyone standing in the doorway.

"I don't think you are supposed to swear in front of babies, you know." Daryl turned around and Carol was shuffling from the bed, a yawning Joe cradled in one arm. He just shot her a glare, standing up to pull on his shirt. "And that is exactly the reason why one child was more than enough for those two." She laughed as she said it and Daryl just mumbled something under his breath, which she chose to ignore.

"Let me get Joe's bottles made up and I'll be ready when you are." Daryl only nodded at her as he laced up his boots. He was somewhat amazed as he watched her pull her pants on with one hand, sliding the button into it's hole with ease. "Come on Kates." She held her hand out for the little girl, who took it reluctantly, staring up at Daryl as Carol led her from the room.

That kid weirded him out. The baby wasn't such a pain in the ass. He was pretty quiet and aside from the waking up in the middle of night for food, he was fairly content with his lot. Katie on the other hand, was already an obnoxious brat, at aged two. No matter how much he tried to ignore her, put a distance between them, she insisted on talking to him all the time, following him around the house. She reminded him of his old man's dog. No matter how times the bastard kicked the thing, it still came crawling back. Not that he kicked Katie, as much as he liked to on occasion.

He checked Carol's gun for her, making sure it was full and that everything was in order. It wasn't the only weapon he was going to give her. He'd considered giving her an axe of some sort, but he'd seen her lift one of those, way back when they first met and it was far too heavy for her. He settled on a knife not unlike his own. She would hate to have it and he didn't want to give it to her, he certainly was going to try his damnedest to make sure she didn't have to use it, but he wasn't going to let her go anywhere unarmed.

She was sitting at the kitchen table when he went out to hand them to her. Maggie had the baby on her lap, feeding the little one something from a jar and Carol didn't stop to take a breath as she ran through her list. Times for feeding, sleeping, what not to do. It was exhausting just to hear it.

"Come on, let's just go." Daryl snatched the scrap of paper with the feeding time and pushed it in front of Glenn, who was making Katie's breakfast. "Just don't lose 'em, don't poison them. Easy."

Carol looked at him reproachfully before running her hand over each child's head. "Be good." She murmured to them. She didn't wait to hear a response before heading out the door behind Daryl, pace almost turning into a run as she heard Katie wail behind her.

"She'll be fine." Daryl told her as he started the engine on the truck. He passed her the weapons and she took them with shaking hands. "Just in case." He told her.

It didn't take long to get into town. The route they'd used the day before was fairly easy and Daryl only stopped a couple of times nearer the house they were currently residing in, taking out a couple of stray Walkers with his knife, just in case they got too close to the house.

Daryl parked the truck a little way from the superstore that he intended to take Carol and she was immediately hit with the stench of death. She had forgotten. She rarely had contact with Walkers anymore, Daryl kept it from her as much as he could and she remembered once again, exactly how much she owed this man. She forced herself to swallow the bile she could feel rising, hand flying to her waistband to check she had her weapons.

With a series of hand gestures, he told her where they were heading and what direction threats were likely to come from. She wanted to take his hand as they ran to the back door of the store and knew damn well that he would let her if she tried but she stopped herself from reaching out. They both needed their hands free in case they ran into trouble.

There were several bodies for her to jump over. She feared one would rise up and grab her ankles, as she had seen them do on occassion, but she followed the path Daryl set and avoided any trouble. There were two on their way in, they didn't have a chance to come near them before Daryl took them both out with his knife. He hustled her towards the door, flashing his light in there first before pulling her in, shutting it behind them.

Daryl knew where he was going, picking over the bodies of the fallen that had been taken out the day before. This place wasn't as bad some of the others they'd been to that day, but it was a big store with plenty of entrances and most of them were still open.

There was one in the store room, Carol took a sharp intake of breathe, ready to pull out her knife but he stopped her, going in himself to do it. As he walked back to her, he rolled over an abandoned shopping cart for her to fill.

"Quick as ya can." He murmured to her, leading the way onto the shop floor, remembering the right aisle from before. She stumbled on a dented can on the floor and her shoe squeaked as she righted herself. They both stopped then, holding their breath, listening for the dreaded groaning. After a few seconds, he nudged her on and once she got to the aisle she immediately sought out the things she wanted as stealthily as she could, her gaze occassionally flickering to Daryl, who was pacing behind her, crossbow in hand, watching each end for any unwanted visitors.

"I'm done." She whispered after a few moments. "I need the medical care stuff."

Daryl nodded and gestured towards the end of the aisle and she pushed the cart behind him, trying to ease the squeak that came from one wheel. The groaning that came from behind her was faint at first, neither of them heard it but then the hair at the back of her neck prickled and her breath hitched in her throat.

Her hand went to her hip for the knife before she could turn and she resisted screaming when the thing was upon her. Formally a man in a suit, with thinning hair and broken spectacles hanging from a chain around it's bloody neck, it lurched towards her and she pulled the knife free to lodge it in the first part of it she could reach, it's jaw. Before she could pull it out and stab the Walker again, a hand went to her neck and Daryl leant over her to push his own blade through the creature's rotting skull. It slumped to the ground as Daryl pulled his knife free and she managed to yank her weapon free before the weight of the Walker took her down.

"You ok?" He whispered, mouth to her ear and she nodded shakily. He nudged her elbow and gestured for her to keep going.

It was hard to keep her focus in the medical care aisle. Most of the things had been taken, but right at the end, she spotted the children's medicines and there was still a fair amount there. Most people would've skipped past them all together, their own group had, but Carol knew even children's medicines could be of use to the adults, at a push. So in went the liquid paracetamol, dissolving aspirin and band aids. Teething gel and a lone teething ring. Some sterilising fluid and hand sanitizer. The liquid painkiller that used to make Sophia as drowsy as anything when she was a child. It was a horrible thought, essentially drugging children to keep them quiet, but it might save their lives one day.

Eventually she thought she had exhausted the section of anything she could use and Daryl just shook his head in disbelief when he saw how full the cart was. She let herself give him a small smile in return and she stopped rolling the cart when she got half way down the aisle. Her eyes fell to the small square boxes, all in different colours and she looked back at Daryl, who was busy scanning the ends of the aisle.

"We're out, right?" She asked him, quietly, gesturing out to the rows of condoms, spilling onto the floor.

Daryl looked taken aback as he turned to face her, clearly not expecting this change of pace. "Uh, yeah, used the last one the other night." She nodded and reached down, scooping up four boxes, dumping them in the cart.

"Fuck that, the way we're goin', we'll be out by next week. I ain't askin' to get some off Glenn." Daryl grunted at her, reaching over and tossing another handful in.

Carol slapped a hand over her mouth to stifle the giggle that was begging for release. It was true though. He had brought two boxes the first time they had sex and when she thought about it, it really wasn't that long ago. A few weeks. If that. But it was new for both of them and she wondered if the desire to behave like rabbits would wear off. It had certainly slowed since the children arrived. But then in the state park, there would be cabins, so Daryl told her. Separate rooms.

She tossed in one last box and he gave her a grin as they made their way down the aisle. There were two more Walkers dragging themselves towards them. One was one it's hands and knees and she didn't hesitate to take that one out, knife, hitting the target right at the top of it's skull.

It wasn't easy and she suspected it never would be, but she felt a little proud of herself. Sure, Daryl wouldn't let her get hurt, but she did it herself. She wouldn't savour this chore, but she could do it if she had to.

They were back on the road three hours after they had left the house and Carol found that she was itching to make sure the children were alright. She was staring out the window when the truck lurched to a stop, sending her sliding forward, almost off the bench. They were on a road that was sheltered with trees, just a mile or so away from the house.

"Daryl, what are-" She was cut off when Daryl slide across the bench to close the gap between them, mouth slamming on hers. It took her a second, but she responded. Hands finding their way to his neck, pressing him close.

"I can't even remember the last time I got you to myself." He murmured into her mouth, pressing his lips back on hers as he yanked at her coat, pulling it from her shoulders.

"Aww, poor baby." She pulled her lips from his to utter the uncharacteristic sarcasm but he only chuckled, helping her pull her shirt over her head.

She hadn't worn a bra. He was grateful, one less thing for him to fumble with in his haste to get to her. His hands went straight to her tits, kneading the flesh as he pressed his kisses to her neck and she gasped as he pushed her up on his lap.

It took all of ten seconds for her boots, pants and underwear to hit the floor of the truck and for her to be grinding her pelvis into his.

"I hardly think it's fair for me to be the only one naked here." She managed to pant out as his mouth trailed down her collarbone to her chest.

"Shut up." He growled back, mouth covering one nipple briefly before he conceded and shrugged his jacket off, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it onto the dashboard.

She reached over for the condoms on the other side of the truck and passed them to him to open whilst she fumbled at his pants, undoing his belt and he lifted his hips to pull them down enough for his dick to spring free.

Her delicate fingers went straight to his length as he pulled the condom free from the box and he let out a groan as she worked her hand up and down. He could see her head bending forward, ready to take him into her mouth, but he nudged her away to roll the condom on. Not that he didn't want it, but if there was any way he would come too soon, it would be her hot, wet mouth wrapping around him.

He held her by the hips and guided her on to him and she sunk down quickly, moaning as her ass hit his thighs. She clutched him tight, hands scrabbling at his back as she rocked on him and he pressed his face to her chest, teeth nipping at whatever skin he could reach.

When she came, she clenched her thighs together, locking his legs in place and her nails dug into his skin as she huffed out his name in his ear, so breathy he almost missed it, her cunt convulsing around his dick. She slowed only for a moment before picking up the pace again, letting him get his own release a few minutes later, coming with a groan.

They stayed in that position for a moment, savouring the peace and quiet. Eventually, Carol lifted herself up slightly, letting his soft dick free but he held her hips to his thighs.

"You can come on a run again." He told her, pressing one more kiss to the side of the neck.

"Might be too much action for little old me." She responded and he growled softly, teeth nipping at her earlobe.

Eventually, she clambered from him and let him straighten himself up before he started the engine. She pressed herself close, enjoying the feel of his free hand stroking her side as they drove back to the house. It was only when they were a few hundred feet away that she remembered that she had to put her clothes back on and she cursed at Daryl as he laughed at her fumbling with her shirt, slowing the truck to let her get herself composed.

Yes, he decided, she could definitely come along again.


	23. Chapter 23

Author's Notes: Thank you for every glance at my work! I've tried to keep all information regarding Nebraska and specifically, Fort Robinson, factual.

TWDTWDTWD

Forty eight hours later, they were back on the road. Everyone seemed to be in the mood to push on to Nebraska and get close to the state park as soon as possible. Daryl seemed to be the most eager, pushing to drive longer hours, cover more ground through the night.

There was no mention of him going back on the bike to travel. Once all their supplies were packed up, there was hardly room for it on the back of the truck. Carol even suggested he ride it, if only so she didn't have to rest her feet on a plastic drum of water whilst they rode but he just shook his head and told her they'd have to find another vehicle on their travels for T-Dog to drive.

Carol did not know where this change came from, but since they came back from the trip to the superstore, he had given up all ideas of keeping his distance from her when the children were within sight. Not that he had turned into a doting Daddy or anything. He hadn't had a brain transplant after all. But he didn't moan about them at all, not even when the night before, Katie had burrowed her way into their bed before they'd even gone to sleep and absolutely insisted that she had to sleep between Carol and Daryl and her doll and her teddy bear had to come too.

She was pretty sure she'd overheard him actually engage in conversation with Katie the morning they left. She woke up with Joe gurgling beside her, but otherwise alone. When she finally heaved herself out of the warmth, to find the source of the voices somewhere on the lower floor, they weren't even in the same room, Daryl was in the kitchen, hunting through cupboards, whilst Katie was scribbling furiously in a colouring book in the sitting room. When she asked, he denied it, but she knew.

And along with Daryl, the help with the children still kept coming. There were offers to swap places with the children in the truck, although Carol refused that, because she didn't mind sitting on the bench with them now that Daryl actually spoke to her on the journey. Sure, he wasn't big on chat, but the silence between them was the comfortable kind now and not very silent at all with Katie and Joe.

She accepted whatever anyone offered when they stopped though, whether it was a diaper change or a bottle or five minutes of wearing her new prized possession of the baby sling so she could pee in peace. And so the headache that had been thumping away between her eyes for days began to lift. She was feeling optimistic. Dare she even say it, considering the never ending worry of death, she was content.

"Do you think, that Robinson could be the kind of place we could live, indefinitely, maybe?" She asked him, shifting a little on the seat to see his face, although there was little to be seen in the dark, not even the moon was out to light their path. The children had long fallen asleep, Katie was in the back portion of the cab, there only was enough space remaining for her to squeeze in. Joe was tucked up in the sling against her chest, having just returned to sleep after a feed.

"Can't see why not. There ain't gonna be much more Walkers, eventually they gotta slow up, right? And there's plenty of land and maybe we can plant stuff and shit." He told her, eyes not coming away from the road.

"That would be nice." She murmured, shifting in her seat to press herself against him a little. He let her, hand coming from the wheel to rest on her thigh, although it was covered with a blanket.

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It seemed that they arrived in Nebraska all of a sudden. One day they were gathering supplies in a deserted town, the next they were just five miles from Fort Robinson. The area surrounding the park was relatively quiet, the odd Walker here and there, but never more than half a dozen in one spot.

Rick insisted that the entire state park was searched thoroughly, every square inch rid of any Walkers, the layout of the land committed to memory and the cabins were livable. It would take days, if not a couple of weeks. The park was roughly four square miles in size and whilst a lot of it was forestry, it would all still need to be combed through. Even then though, there was still a chance for Walkers to stumble upon them - there was not a secure boundary line.

Temporary shelter came in the form of a bed and breakfast five miles from the park. It was fairly intact, every surface covered in a thick layer of dust and even though they weren't staying there forever, Carol instantly began work on clearing it up.

They'd picked up another truck on their journeys, not a shiny and new as Daryl's, nor as big, but it was this vehicle that Daryl and Rick were using to scout the land. It was just the two of them that were going up there, first circling the property, making sure there was no-one living there, then slowly inching their way in, taking out the threats as they came their way.

Glenn and Maggie were on scavenging duty. Now they were reasonably close to their hopefully permanent place of residence, there were hopes of storing as much food, fuel and ammo as possible, so that if the snow did come, as it often did in Nebraska during the winter, they would not need to leave the area.

So every day, the four went out in two separate directions, leaving the others waiting for them. T-Dog and Hershel concentrated on keeping watch, whilst the women and children stayed in doors, their days spent performing an inventory on everything they possessed, adding to their evergrowing wishlist.

"Hey Lori, you know what, I'm going to make a start on the laundry. I can't stand wearing these things any longer." Carol dragged the holdall containing her dirty clothes, along with Daryl's and the children's into the kitchen. No mean feat with a baby strapped to her chest. "I'll go have a look in the garage to see if there's a tub or something."

"Sure, be sure to tell T-Dog or Hershel." Lori reminded her, barely looking up from her spot at on the kitchen floor, sorting through tins. "Want me to take Joe?"

"No, he's almost sleeping." Carol looked down at the little boy, who despite the movement, was blinking heavily, drifting off even though Lori and Carol were talking. "I've left Katie in the sitting room with Carl."

Lori nodded to signify that she had heard and Carol went out through the backdoor, scanning the area for Hershel or T-Dog. It was late afternoon, the nights were drawing in and she knew Daryl and Rick would be back soon, they usually got back before dark. She spotted T-Dog, way down the the front of the property and she didn't bother to call to him. By the time she walked down to him and got back, she could've been in the garage and back in the house again.

The garage was the double kind, a big building, with a large slooping roof, with lots stored across the top of the beams. There were no cars in the there, just empty spots where they would've been. Plenty of junk was stacked against the walls and Carol began to pick through it, for anything that could be of use. She let of a quiet whoop of delight when she spotted the clothes horse, yanking it free and pushing it into the empty space in the centre of the garage whilst she looked for a tub.

Joe hadn't fallen asleep, what with the jiggling motion as Carol shifted things around, pulling out a couple of things that could be of use, a couple of flashlights, a small tool box. She had her back to the garage doors that were ajar, just enough to provide her with a little light. A shadow passed over her and she froze, hands resting on the metal tub she had just found. Then she heard the noise. The wheezing groan. She hardly dared to turn around, her hand flew to her waistband for her weapons and she found nothing. She hadn't bothered to tuck them into her waistband because she hadn't intended to leave the property.

She clutched the baby closer with one hand, turning around to face the noise. One Walker. One male Walker, wearing only a dirty pair of jeans, it's feet bare and it's scalp pulled back revealing it's rotting skull. It was slow to move, one leg injured in some way but it was stumbling it's way over to her. She darted for the side door, tripping her way over the junk that she had moved to get to the back, clutching Joe's head in case she tripped, yanking uselessly on the handle, she realised it was locked and that there was no hope of forcing it open.

But by going for the door, she had backed herself into a corner and her eyes darted across the space between her and that thing, looking for anything that could be used as a weapon. Her had fell upon a wooden handle and she heaved it hard to pull it free. It was an axe, the handle was almost half her height and Carol knew she would be unable to lift it over her head to kill the Walker.

She thought about screaming. Someone would hear her, but she quickly decided against it. If one Walker was about, who knew how many screaming would bring? She climbed backwards, over the piles of broken picnic tables and rusty bikes to put more distance between her and the Walker. It was close now, just short of an arms length away. she heaved the axe up and swung blindly.

It lodged itself in the Walker's knee, sending it crumbling to the ground. It didn't even give itself a moment to recover, using it's arms to propel it's self closer. The baby let out a cry, finally having realised that something was amiss and his squeal was almost ear piercing. It only caused the Walker to groan louder and Carol realised that now could no longer reach for the axe, she had no choice but to try and skirt past it fast enough. For the baby's sake.

She clutched him close, holding his head tight to her chest and crawled over the bicycle that was in her way. She let out the breathe she'd been holding as she made the leap over the fallen Walker, landing awkwardly on one foot and she caught herself before she hit the floor face first.

Just as she prepped herself to make a run for it, the thing lunged for her, catching her by the ankle and sending her to the ground. She landed on her back, catching her tailbone so hard that she couldn't help but scream in agony, the wind knocked out of her. She kicked at it's head as Joe screamed louder, looking to the garage doors to see if help would be with her. She could feel the Walker mashing at her boot, but the leather was thick and it couldn't get it's teeth through it.

Her hand reached out, trying to get purchase on something, anything to try and pull herself away from it. She could hear the roar of a car engine outside and she screamed again, her hand finding the tool box she retrieved earlier. She scrambled in side it, catching her hand on loose nails, but she found the cool metal handle of something and she yanked had, pulling a spanner free.

The Walker was pulling itself higher now and she used all the strength left in her, to smash the spanner into the exposed skull of the thing, sending rotten blood flying in all directions. It fell limp, heavy on her knees and she used her blood covered hands to try and pull herself free, the screams of Joe ringing in her ears.

Before she could even lift herself free, arms came under her, jerking her upwards and she made to scream again, before she realised that is was Daryl that was touching her.

"Are you ok?" He asked anxiously, kicking the body of the Walker away from them. His hands turned hers over, wiping at the blood. She nodded quickly and pulled her hands away to look at Joe, the back of his head was covered in the blood and the sight of it made her feel sick.

"Is he ok?" Daryl asked, pushing her fumbling fingers away to help her pull him free from the sling. His screams had dulled to sobbing, face wet with tears.

"I fell." She whispered. "I didn't land on him but..." Finally the sling loosened enough for Daryl to pull the child out, her hands were shaking so badly, she let him, fearful she would drop him. He clutched Joe around the waist, hand feeling his skull for lumps.

"Hey, everything okay?" Rick's head came through the garage door.

"Yeah, just one here, it's done. They're okay." Daryl answered. Rick nodded and ducked out.

"There's more?" Carol asked Daryl, using the edge of her sleeve to wipe some of the blood that speckled her face.

"Five, last I saw. It's fine, they're dealt with." Daryl checked the baby one last time. "He's fine."

"He's never screamed so loud." She murmured, reaching out and touching the baby's cheek. "He was so scared."

"It's okay." Daryl reassured her, leaning down to take a look at her boot, teeth marks marring the leather. "He won't ever remember it."

A sudden thought popped into Carol's head. Katie. "Is Katie alright? They didn't get into the house?" She grabbed Daryl's shoulder to pull him up to her, hobbling her way to the door.

"Slow down, Carol! She's fine. They didn't get into the house. Lori was upstairs with her. Stop!" He grabbed her shoulder to stop her limping. "Calm down. You go in like that, you're gonna scare her. Everyone's alright."

Carol nodded tearfully, slumping against him. Daryl wound his free arm around her waist, helping her to get to the house. They stopped at the tap outside the house and Carol shakely washed her hands and face to get off as much blood as possible.

Daryl handed her a rag from his back pocket and she soaked it under the cold water, rubbing the blood from Joe's hair. To his credit, he hardly made a sound, squirming only a little in Daryl's arms, when he looked passably unscathed, she set the rag down, arms finally steady enough to take the little one.

Daryl handed him over willingly enough, he hadn't looked as uncomfortable as Carol would've thought, considering he had never held him before. Joe was quiet now and for that Carol was pleased. She only hoped Katie was unaware of what happened.

The little girl rushed to her legs as they stepped in the doorway. She was chatting away, hardly taking a breath and Carol found herself unable to focus enough to understand her garble. She sat at the table, Lori instantly upon her with a first aid kit and a bowl of water and the other woman's chatter added to the noise.

Daryl hovered over her shoulder as Lori worked at the cuts on her hand, shifting from foot to foot, clearly irritated with the noise.

"Katie, cut it out!" He eventually snapped out at the little girl, who was trying her hardest to clamber onto Carol's knee next to her brother. She stopped half way up Carol's leg, sliding down and looking up at him with what only could be described as disdain, if such a thing were possible from a toddler.

"Jesus fuckin' Christ." She mumbled and all three adults turned to look at her agape, as if they couldn't quite believe what they had heard. They were silent for a moment and then Lori let out a snort of laughter, hand flying to her mouth to cover the action. It was enough to set Carol off into giggles, even though she was absolutely horrified with what she had just heard and even Daryl managed to crack a smile.

"That is your doing." She accused him, when she finally caught her breath, but she couldn't produce the stern tone she wanted. Daryl merely shrugged, hoisting Katie up onto the table before heading out the door to help the others dispose of the Walker bodies. He stopped as his foot crossed the threshold, as if he had just remembered something.

"Park's ready. We can start packin' to go tomorrow." He told them both, before heading out.

And so their life would begin again.


	24. Chapter 24

Author's Notes: So this is it, the last one. Thank you for sticking with it through the good and the bad! It's pretty flufftastic. Sorry! I have plenty of other things lined up! Find me on Twitter/Tumblr under SepticLovebite.

TWDTWDTWD

He didn't really know when he regarded them as his family. Not just as the Robinson group, which they'd been known to the outsiders as for years. Sure, they were all his family, really. He'd known them eight years, after all. Lived and worked with them. But Carol, Katie and Joe, they were his proper family. The ones he'd lay down and die for.

The first time he ever looked after them alone, perhaps? They'd been at Fort Robinson for a few months, all residing in one larger lodge, when Lori went in to labour. He knew that the day would come and he knew that labour wasn't exactly going to occur in the middle of the day and everything would be back to normal come dinner, but he hadn't really thought about it.

Carol had gone to help Hershel with the birth when Lori's waters broke during dinner, without even looking to see if he would be alright with the two grubby brats stuffing their faces with mashed potato. Eventually, the excitement cleared the table and he was left alone with the two of them.

He drew the line at changing Joe's diaper. He called Maggie for that one and he wasn't ashamed of it. He was getting used to doing things for them. He could make a bottle now and he'd even gotten up to do the night feeds before, when Carol was sick once. He was even used to putting Katie to bed, because when Carol did it, it was an endless circle of bed time stories and getting up for glasses of water. He just dumped her in the bed and shut the door and it never, ever failed to work. Ok, so he tucked her in and let her kiss him goodnight, but that was his and Katie's secret and he would take that one to the grave.

When Carol came down to the kitchen at breakfast time, the sound of a newborn squalling upstairs, she looked exhausted but pleased.

"It's a girl." She announced, slumping in the chair next to him, watching him push tiny pieces of canned fruit into Joe's mouth.

TWDTWDTWD

Maybe it was after the first winter in Fort Robinson, when everyone finally moved out of the large communal cabin and he didn't even bat an eyelid when it came to moving into the three bedroom lodge a few feet away.

"Hey man, am I dreaming, or are you actually clutching a box of teddy bears?" Glenn asked, as he worked on screwing the frames of a cot together. Carol and Daryl were the first to move into a lodge of their own, mostly, he suspected because of the absolute certainty that one of the children would have woken the rest of the them up before dawn.

"Shut up, asshole." He growled, slamming the box onto the floor by Glenn's feet. There was no real defence for it, he was pussy whipped by a three year old. Katie was the biggest drama queen he'd ever met and she followed Daryl everywhere. He was getting used to it. He learnt that there was only one escape and that was to go hunting everyday. Those few hours that were his alone, were enough to stave off any irritation with her constant company.

"She's right there!" Glenn protested, gesturing behind him, where Katie stood in the doorway watching the pair. "She called me an asshole last week and I'm pretty sure she knows how to use the word "fuck" now."

Daryl shrugged. He didn't really give a shit if she did swear. Really, what did it fucking matter? Carol nagged on him about it all the time and he did try to rein it in front of her, but it was damned hard to change the habits of a lifetime in just a few months.

"Whatever, you are an asshole." He told Glenn, as he left the room to fetch another box. He nudged Katie in front of him, for her to move with him back to the main house. It was pretty quiet around there, but the children were never left alone outside for even a moment. "Come on kid, we got to get the rest o' your crap." Why the hell did the kids have so much shit? Seriously, they had twice as many bags of clothes as he did and theirs were _smaller_. And a fuck ton of toys. He got that they needed stuff to keep them quiet, but did Katie need a whole shelf of colouring books? She usually spent all of three seconds scribbling with one colour, usually blue, and then claimed it was a picture of a horse or some shit.

What made it worse, was that Carol stuck them everywhere, making appreciative noises about them. They were like fucking wallpaper. They were blue scribbles, for Christ's sake. He would never understand it.

TWDTWDTWD

He was pretty sure that he almost lost his family when they'd just made their three year anniversary at Fort Robinson. He couldn't even remember what started off the bad mood that had plagued him for days, maybe he was just feeling like crap. Both the kids were crotchety as fuck and it was wearing both him and Carol down.

Carl had been winding Joe up for days, pushing him to call Daryl Daddy. Daryl had always made a point of having them call him by his name only. Yeah, okay, he would admit they were his kids, even if they weren't his by blood, but they weren't calling him Daddy. It just freaked him out. They called Carol Momma and that was just fine. Katie was six, going on seven and she had had the talk about her biological parents. There were no secrets.

Joe was only three, maybe closer to four, although they were never really sure when his birthday was and he had only started coming out of his shell. He'd always followed Carol around before now, never leaving her side.

Carl was a little shit, both he and Carol had both had words with him about it, but the kid was relentless. Eventually the sound of Joe following him around chanting Daddy over and over had Daryl completely flipping out, screaming at him to shut up.

Joe had burst into tears. Hysterical sobs that he could hardly breathe through and Daryl had never felt like such a low piece of shit as he did then. Carol overheard and he had never in his life seen her so angry. She had never screamed at him before, hardly ever raised her voice and never lost her temper with him.

"Get out." She hissed at him, scooping the little boy up and clutching him close.

"Oh, for fuck's sake. No. Give him here." He held his hands out to take the child and Joe recoiled into Carol's chest.

"I mean it, Daryl. You can't pick and choose when you want kids." She brushed past him into their bedroom, slamming the door shut.

He didn't know what to do. How to fix this. So even though he was ashamed of it afterward, he ran. He took off into the safety of the forest, taking his anger out on any creature who dared step into his eyeline. He ran the argument over in his head so many times that he hadn't even noticed that it was dark.

She wanted him gone. That's what she said. He always wondered when she would tire of him. He was bad tempered and stubborn, he knew that. He tried to rein in it, but he was never going to be Mr Happy-Fucking-Go-Lucky. He didn't do as much with the children as Rick did with his kids or Glenn did with his new baby, but it never felt natural. He wasn't doing a good job of parenting.

So he hunted and protected, but these days there were hardly a need for him in Carol's life. Walkers were thin on the ground now, at least in Nebraska. Their group's number had swollen to almost 50 people. She didn't need him. Not really.

When the moon was at the highest point in the sky, he'd had enough. Fine, if she didn't want him, that was her decision. But she wasn't taking Katie and Joe from him. He wasn't fucking perfect, but he was trying. He would do better.

When he got back to the cabin, he'd expected it to be in darkness but there was a lamp burning in the sitting room. She sat in the darkest corner, in the ratty chair he sat at to clean his weapons, blanket wrapped around her feet.

He said nothing as he set his bow and his string of game by the door, tugging his jacket and boots off. She finally looked up to him as he crossed the room, eyes dark.

"I thought the worst." She said finally, voice hardly more than a whisper.

"You think I can't handle what ever is in the forest?" He sneered out at her.

"That is hardly the worst that could happen. I thought you had left us."

"You don't get to tell me when I get to go. They're mine too."

"I wasn't telling you to leave...Christ, I was angry, Daryl! I was trying to comfort our child!"

He recoiled at that, taking a step backwards.

"Katie sobbed herself to sleep tonight, because she thought you were never coming home. And I had to promise her you would but I didn't know if I believed that." She was crying now, wiping the wetness away angrily.

"I'm sorry. I fucked up. It won't happen again. I'm tryin', I swear."

She nodded once, turning her head away and he took that as the best he would get from her, for tonight at least. It was more than he deserved.

He turned to the children's room, the two were huddled in the one bed and Joe turned to the door when he heard it open.

"Hey, little man." He whispered, crouching at the edge of the bed. Joe said nothing, his eyes were ringed with red, lashes sticking together with tears. "I shouldn'a shouted at ya today. I was wrong." He reached out to touch the little boy, squeezing his hand lightly. Finally, Joe responded, clutching him back.

Katie stirred at the noise, sitting up, rubbing her eyes. "You're back!"

"Yeah, Daddy's home."

TWDTWDTWD

Carol didn't mind that they never put a label on what they were, even though they'd been whatever they were for over six years. She was too old to be a "girlfriend", "partner" seemed so formal. She overheard him call her his "old lady" once, but she shot that one down pretty quick. She was only 48 or so and she tried her damnedest not to feel even that old.

He was her Daryl. She was his Carol. Marriage did not hold any value in this world anymore. Still, it was lovely to watch Maggie and Glenn walk down the aisle, even if it were more than a blessing than anything else. Officiated by Rick, with Beth as Maid of Honour, Katie as Bridesmaid and Maggie and Glenn's little one Rose as flowergirl, it was more an excuse for a good party than anything else.

"Do ya mind that we ain't done that? Got hitched?" He murmured to her at the end of the night, as she tucked Joe into the bed, fully dressed. It was past midnight and the children had run riots all evening, lasting right up until the music stopped playing.

"Not at all. It doesn't change anything, does it?" Carol kicked off her shoes, new high heels found especially for the day, her feet had forgotten how painful they were, it had been so many years.

"I ain't good at that kinda fuss." He told her, voice low, almost apologetic. It was funny almost, after that many years he still felt he had to explain himself to her, apologise for being who he was. Like she didn't know every little quirk or habit, his likes and dislikes as if they were her own traits. Just six years, yet she knew this man inside and out.

"I don't need that kind of fuss either." She reassured him, slipping off her dress, a red sheath that she hadn't even picked herself. Maggie had been the one in charge of the run for the clothes. Daryl had gone with the group and she suspected he'd picked the dress for her, not that he would ever admit it.

She slid into the bed and he joined her seconds later, turning the lamp down low. She turned on her side so her back was to him and he shuffled closer to her, hip touching the small of her back.

"Do you want that kinda fuss?" He whispered into the darkness, so soft she barely heard him. She twisted around to face him, but he was staring resolutely at the ceiling, hands clasped over his stomach.

"No. I'm happy." She told him, reaching out to clasp his hand in hers. "It's just a ceremony and a ring."

Still, when he tossed something shiny at her a couple of months later, she caught it and couldn't stop the grin that spread across her face. A gold band. A perfect fit.

"I ain't good with ceremony, but I'm good with a ring. You?" He asked, hand fiddling with the knife at his hip.

All she could do was nod, eyes shining. She placed a kiss on his cheek as she passed him, hollering out to the kids about tidying up their bedrooms.

When two more survivors came to their group seeking shelter, she introduced herself as Carol Dixon and the name slid off her tongue so easily, not even Lori noticed that she had said it at first. He came into the room as she was dishing out dinner for the refugees, saying nothing to them, as was his way with new people and she introduced him as her husband and he only looked at her, one eyebrow raised, but saying nothing.

TWDTWDTWD

He finally got to take Katie out hunting when she was nine. She'd been nagging him since she got old enough to realise where he went each morning. He in turn had been nagging Carol to let him take her since she got old enough to know when to zip the lip around him so that he could tolerate her in the forest for hours on end.

It was Joe that had the potential to be a hunter, really, not Katie. Like they were as babies, she was the loud one, whilst Joe was content to sit quietly by himself. But Carol forbade it, claiming him to be too young. Still, he would make Katie the best hunteress he could, fashioning her a bow of her own, which she wore proudly around their camp.

After a couple of months, she could shoot an arrow pretty well, although she was loud as hell, even when she wasn't talking. She was fearless, unafraid with being left alone among the trees, as he went to stalk their dinner. She had seen a Walker stray into their land, watched him kill it without fear, despite there being so few of them in the area now.

Still, he couldn't deny that the day he heard her shriek "Daddy!" at the top of her lungs wasn't one of the most terrifying days of his life. He ran as fast as he could, crossbow raised, towards the sound of her voice.

"I swear kid, I don't want to hurt ya, honest! I just want to rest!" The man was younger than him, late twenties maybe, dirty and skinny and fucking terrified of his kid. His little girl, who stood firm, bow and arrow poised at his head. He was so fucking proud of her.

"Get the fuck away from my kid." He growled at the man, shoving him backwards.

"Dad, I got it." She looked at him, head cocked and he resisted laughing at her. "He's lookin' for our place."

"Fuckin' interrogate him or what?" He asked her, gesturing for the stranger to walk head of them. He seemed relieved that he wasn't in instant danger of death.

She just shook her head, rolling her eyes in that sarcastic way of hers, weapon still trailing the man. "We better not tell Momma how this went down, Daddy." She told him solemnly and he nodded his head in agreement. Some things were best kept between fathers and daughters.

TWDTWDTWD

He was always hostile to new people in their group. They'd been fairly lucky so far, there hadn't been any major incidents with "bad" individuals and Carol knew it was partly due to Daryl's suspicious nature. Still, when the Johnson family from neighbouring Kansas made their way to Fort Robinson, he was only openly rude to their youngest child, 12 year old Jacob.

Jacob was particularly interested in 11 year old Katie, who strode around camp like she owned the place, frequently gutting their dinner on an old picnic bench in front of the other youngsters, taking pleasure in their squeamish reaction.

Watching Daryl stalk around her like a bodyguard, growling at the young boy anytime he strayed too close was funny to watch but eventually she had to intervene, for everyone's sake.

"You can't watch over her all the time. He's just a boy." She told him, watching him on the floor with 8 year old Joe, who was concentrating on drawing an eagle. Daryl was on his belly with the child, giving him direction on how to make it as realistic as possible.

It was not easy for him, to sit and enjoy this kind of interaction. Joe did not enjoy hunting like Katie did, despite his natural talent and she knew Daryl could not understand it. Still, he tried to engage with him, to encourage the boy in whatever he wanted to do.

"Kid's got an eye on him that I don't like." He told her firmly.

"He is 12. He's harmless and Katie is more interested in chasing rabbits. He's just curious. How many pre-teens do you know that can slice up a deer without flinching?" She asked him, slumping back into the armchair by the fire.

"I could." He told her and she looked at him pointedly.

"All he wants to do is tap ass, Momma." Joe looked up from his drawing to face her, stating this as though it were fact.

"Don't say things like that, Joe!" She chided him, reaching out to cuff him softly across the back of his head. "And you!" The tap she gave Daryl was nowhere near as soft. "Don't teach him things like that. They are _children_."

The front door was wrenched open then, Katie flying through and slamming it shut with so much force the whole room shook.

"You are so _embarrassin'_!" She shouted, finger pointed in his direction. "Mom, he told Jacob Johnson that if he came near me, he'd tie his dick in a knot! Now he won't go fruit pickin' with me!"

She didn't wait for a suitable response to that before storming to her bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

Carol couldn't even work up a suitable chastisment for Daryl, looking at him briefly before heading to Katie's room.

"Same goes for you kid, no women." He warned his youngest, who'd returned to the ardous task of colouring his drawing.

"I'm eight." Joe told him, not even looking up from his work.

"I don't care. No girls until ya thirty eight. They're all batshit crazy anyway, look atcha sister." Daryl warned.

Joe nodded knowingly.

It took an hour of coaxing, but finally Katie and Carol returned to the sitting room and Joe handed Katie a sheet of paper for her to start her own drawing. She took it willingly enough, unusual for her because she often described anything her little brother did as childish. Daryl pulled himself off the floor to join Carol on the couch, watching the two as they scribbled peacefully.

He couldn't remember when he first thought of them as family. Then he realised it didn't even matter. He loved them, they loved him. And that was enough.


End file.
